Seven short stories, written in the 40s, 50s and 60s but published in this volume in 2002.
The longest, 'Novelette', follows a disturbed and angry young man convalescing from wounds sustained in WW2, and billetted on a couple in the country. The wonderful descriptions transport the reader:
'The shadow of a cloud came crabwise, the colours were all damped down and every blade of grass flowed towards him from the east. He passed scraggy cabbages and rows of empty peasticks. Outside a shed was a regiment of flowerpots, some broken, some whole, a tumulus of stones and empty tins, around and between them all the rich weeds of summer mashed and blackened with frost.'
The outcome of the relationship between young William and the couple- draper Edward with his 'lardy smooth chin' and mild Luise- forms the basis of the story.
Also of note are 'The Iconoclasts' in which a scornful 10 year old goes to play in a windmill with a much despised 5 year old hanger-on....
The title story again features a young boy; he spends his spare time swimming underwater in the nearby river until one day...
Recommended reading. ( )