The Earth Hums in B Flat - Softcover

Strachan, Mari

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1847671926 ISBN 13: 9781847671929

Publisher: Canongate Books Ltd, 2009

Synopsis

The Earth Hums in B Flat is a story of dark family secrets unraveled by the shrewd insight of twelve-year-old Gwenni Morgan, a child with an irrepressible spirit living in a Welsh village that is reluctantly entering the modern age. From the small bed that she shares with her sister at night she flies up into the starry sky above her village and looks down on the lives of its inhabitants. And when the family that she babysits for is rocked by the sudden, unexplainable disappearance of their patriarch, Gwenni is determined to solve the mystery of Ifan Evan's whereabouts. Turning amateur detective, she is unaware that the trail will lead her closer to home than she ever imagined.
Told with a breathtaking, irresistible blend of freshness and wisdom, the voice that sixty-two-year-old Welsh debut novelist Mari Strachan has created with Gwenni is vibrant, charming, and full of heart. An unforgettable character, Gwenni's unique way of seeing the world lends her the ability to make the ordinary extraordinary. A magical novel about the trials of youth, familial duty, and understanding, The Earth Hums in B Flat will transport you to another time and place.

About this title

Review:

"The Earth Hums in B Flat is a richly evocative, warm but unsentimental tale of a child detective struggling to piece together clues about the lives around her ... extremely compelling. I loved this novel." (Catherine O'Flynn, author of What Was Lost)

"

I loved this debut, which manages to give a young girl's narrative an authentically quirky aspect, without ever resorting to cutesiness or cosiness . . . Strachan eschews whimsy for reality in a beautifully written story about growing
up.

" (Lesley McDowell Independent on Sunday)

"A fondness for unorthodoxy gives [Strachan's] girl-growing-up story its unique flavour . . . A warm and touching, but blessedly unsentimental, novel." (Kate Saunders The Times 2009-02-21)

"Strachan's prose is pitch perfect. A gorgeous debut." (Eithne Farry Marie Claire 2009-04-01)

"At a time when many panic-stricken publishers want their debut novelists to resemble junior celebs fresh out of stage school, Mari Strachan - and Canongate - are proving that the words still matter most. ... Strachan has a voice and a vision all her own." (Boyd Tonkin Independent 2009-03-06)

Book Description:

A compelling, brilliantly-received debut from a moving, nostalgic and truly authentic new voice

About this edition

• Publisher: Canongate Books Ltd
• Publication date: 2009
• ISBN 10: 1847671926
• ISBN 13: 9781847671929
• Binding: Paperback
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 329