Short stories from the award-winning, bestselling and acclaimed Michael Arditti

'[These stories] simply and elegantly break your heart. They deserve a wide audience, and will create a wiser one' Amanda Craig

Arditti imbues his stories of loneliness, confusion and the uncertainties of sexual neophytes with genuine pathos and . . . humour' The Times

A young boy discovers the ambiguity of adult affection. A camp comedian cracks up on stage. A picture-restorer learns to accept her husband's true nature. A travel agent tastes the mysterious power of the Internet. A honeymoon couple take an unconventional route to love . . .

These stories employ a spectrum of different voices to explore all aspects of experience - friendship, family, misunderstandings, frustrations, griefs and joys. They will appeal not only to the author's loyal readers, but also to a broad new readership for their assured style, humour, compassion and insight.

[These stories] simply and elegantly break your heart. They deserve a wide audience, and will create a wiser one -- Amanda Craig * Literary Review *
Arditti imbues his stories of loneliness, confusion and the uncertainties of sexual neophytes with genuine pathos and . . . humour * The Times *
At his best when he . . . allows his characters to seduce us with nothing more than the ordinariness of their lives * Times Literary Supplement *
The diverse, urbane stories here ARE good, some of them are fun, and others are far from clean -- Shena Mackay
These are grown-up stories for grown-up people . . . presented in often extreme and dramatic narratives -- Michael Langan * Attitude *
A simply outstanding collection . . . Elegant, tender, shocking, full of wit and insight - these stories are never less than beautifully executed * Manchester City Life *

Michael Arditti is a novelist, short story writer and critic. His novels are The Celibate (1993), Pagan and her Parents (Pagan's Father in the USA) (1996), Easter (2000), Unity (2005), A Sea Change (2006), The Enemy of the Good (2009), Jubilate (2011), The Breath of Night (2013), Widows and Orphans (2016), Of Men and Angels (2018) and The Anointed (2020). His short story collection, Good Clean Fun, was published in 2004. He was awarded a Harold Hyam Wingate scholarship in 2000, a Royal Literary Fund fellowship in 2001, an Oppenheim-John Downes memorial award in 2003 and Arts Council awards in 2004 and 2007. He was the Leverhulme artist in residence at the Freud museum in 2008. His novels have been short- and long-listed for several literary awards and Easter won the inaugural Waterstone's Mardi Gras award. In 2012 he was awarded an Honorary DLitt by the University of Chester.