Shena Mackay

Past and present merge in this poignant novel, which begins with a Scottish Presbyterian minister and his family arriving in New Zealand in 1909 and moves on to the very different lives of his descendants in modern-day London.

The Nautilus was built in the1930's as a floating haven for intellectuals and artists. Celeste and Francis, two of the original inhabitants, live there with elderly Gus Crabb. Joining them is Rowena Snow, an orphan, who is searching for her own utopia.

Life changes dramatically for April when her parents move from Streatham to Kent. Innocence and tragedy mingle in a rare evocation of a 1950's childhood.

In this collection of stories you can be certain of various elements: laughter, underlying shadows, wit, sharpness of perception. This book by Shena Mackay contains not only thirteen brilliant new stories, but a selection of twenty-three more from her previous collections.