BOOKSELLER INFORMATION

Publication Date: 15-Oct-12 | ISBN: 9781844719068 | Trim Size: 198 x 129 mm | Extent: 168pp | Format: Paperback

UK & International Distribution:   | Publishing Status: Active

SYNOPSIS

WINNER OF THE SCOTT PRIZE

A bereaved mother borrows her next door neighbor’s baby. An outsider builds a gingerbread house at the edge of an English village. A woman is seduced into buying special-offer babies at the supermarket. A father is reminded of his son as he watches the rescue of a group of Chilean miners. A little boy attempts to engineer a happily ever after following the death of his sister.

With psychological insight and a lightness of touch frequently found in fairy tales, Bray delves under the surface of ordinary lives to explore loss, disappointment, frustrated expectations and regret. Described as ‘not just excellent, but significant,’ by poet and critic Robert Sheppard, these dark and lyrical stories illuminate extraordinary and everyday occurrences with humanity and humour.

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

Everything a Parent Needs to Know; Just In Case; Sweet Home; The Rescue; Wooden Mum; Dancing in the kitchen; Scaling Never; The Baby Aisle; My Burglar; The Countdown; Bed Rest; Under Covers; Love: Terms and Conditions; The Ice baby; Bodies; I will never disappoint my children; On the Way Home ; Acknowledgements

PRAISE FOR THIS BOOK

“In Sweet Home, Carys Bray lays to rest the myth that fiction which examines the domestic sphere is familiar and unchallenging once and for all. In this work she explores parenthood, loss, childhood and belonging with razor-sharp prose, a killer eye for the stop-you-in-your-tracks detail and a real understanding of the hidden cruelties and unexpectedly sharp comforts of family life. Bray's stories are never afraid to expose the darkness that exists behind suburban front doors, but at their heart are brave, moving evocations of what it means to be at home with those you love. ” —Jenn Ashworth

“The stories in Sweet Home work like beads on a thread, each reflecting on those around it, but each with its own distinct texture and lustre. Nothing is sugar coated. It is honest and unguarded – so far from what mummycentric websites and smug washing powder adverts would have you believe, I feel safe and reassured by all that stark reality. Sweet Home is alive, beautiful and painfully true.” —Sarah Schofield

BIOGRAPHICAL NOTE

Carys completed an MA in Creative Writing in 2010. Her prize-winning stories have been published in a variety of literary magazines, in print and on the web. She is working on her first novel and a PhD. She lives Southport with her husband and four children.