Her last book was entertaining, but this one is better…Very buoyant, witty and informative

A great romp…with considerable heart and winsomeness

Another black comedy masterpiece…an extraordinary, surprisingly funny tale

Another winner from the author of A Short History of Tractors in Ukrainian

Marina Lewycka has pulled off another story with a big heart

Lewycka's heartfelt and funny novel packs as big a punch as any hard-hitting political polemic

An extremely funny book

James created admirable women characters (often a weak point in a male novelist) and his book explores the old-fashioned but nevertheless sound idea that there are fine souls and absolutely appalling people in a world which is not composed of similar self-seeking anti-heroes and anti-heroines. Evil is always present in James and it appears in this book charming, insidious and poisonous to all the good things in the world. A chilling but compelling book to read in the sun

Fear stalks James's pages like grotesquerie in Dickens, like testosterone in Hemingway, like magic in Angela Carter

Provocative

A good story, flourishing characters, and the most persuasive narrative voice

A classic tale of the triumph of youthful naivety over middle-aged cynicism

Classic coming of age novel