The Unbroken Beauty of Rosalind Bone

Small Things Like These is a slim but devastating novel that captures an entire village, an entire world, and the many ways in which a woman can be trapped. It is full of atmosphere and feeling, and is a devastating portrait of a particular place that draws you in with its brutality and beauty.

Format: Hardback
Length: 176 pages
Publication date: 15 June 2023
Publisher: Transworld Publishers Ltd

Small Things Like These meets Under Milk Wood in this slim but devastating novel, which captures an entire village, an entire world, and the many ways in which a woman can be trapped. A real gem.

RUTH GILLIGAN, author of The Butchers, says, "A wonderful novella, full of atmosphere and feeling." SARA BAUME, author of A LINE MADE BY WALKING, adds, "Beautiful, incredibly painterly, and full of breathtaking details. A devastating portrait of a particular place, which draws you in with its brutality and beauty."

CARYL LEWIS, author of DRIFT, says, "Incredibly assured, carefully observed, full of heart. A quietly devastating read which lingers long after the final page." JAN CARSON, author of THE RAPTURES, concludes, "Incredibly assured, carefully observed, full of heart. A quietly devastating read which lingers long after the final page."

Tucked into the Welsh valleys and encircled by silver birch and pine, the village of Cwmcysgod may appear a quiet, sleepy sort of place. But beneath the surface, tensions simmer, hearts ache, and painful truths threaten to emerge.

Sixteen-year-old Catrin Bone knows only what she has been told. Now, she is beginning to question her small world, and a version of the past that seems to entrap and embitter her reclusive mother, Mary.

Mary had a sister once, a girl of unparalleled beauty. Why did she disappear from the village in a shroud of shame all those years ago - and where is she now?

Meanwhile, the Clements brothers, skint and all out of hope, run rampant across the hills and lanes. And old Dai Bevel, whose frailty masks a dark history, dreams of a girl he used to know...

The sins of the past are approaching, for it takes a village: to raise a child, to bring down a woman, to hide something monstrous and to look the other way.

In this tender, sly, exquisitely wrought novella, a unique cast of characters give voice to their versions of the truth. But it is the story of Rosalin.

Catrin Bone, a sixteen-year-old girl, is living in the small village of Cwmcysgod, nestled in the Welsh valleys and surrounded by silver birch and pine trees. However, beneath the peaceful facade of the village, tensions simmer, hearts ache, and painful truths threaten to emerge.

Catrin has always been told what to believe and has never questioned the world around her. But as she grows older, she begins to wonder about the past and the mysterious disappearance of her mother's sister, who was once considered the most beautiful girl in the village.

Mary, Catrin's mother, is a reclusive woman who has always been bitter and embittered by the past. She has a secret that she has kept hidden from her daughter for years, and Catrin is determined to uncover it.

Meanwhile, the Clements brothers, who are desperate and out of hope, roam the hills and lanes of the village, causing chaos and destruction wherever they go. They are a family of outcasts, shunned by the rest of the community for their poverty and their wild behavior.

Old Dai Bevel, a frail and elderly man, also lives in the village. He seems harmless and harmless, but his past is dark and mysterious. He has a secret that he has been hiding for years, and it is about to come to light.

As the sins of the past begin to catch up with the village, a web of lies, deceit, and betrayal begins to unravel. Catrin, Mary, the Clements brothers, and Old Dai Bevel all have secrets that they are desperate to keep hidden, and they will do anything to protect them.

In this tender, sly, exquisitely wrought novella, a unique cast of characters gives voice to their versions of the truth. But it is the story of Rosalin that ultimately captures the heart of the reader.

Rosalin is a young woman who has come to the village to start a new life. She is kind and gentle, and she quickly becomes a favorite of the villagers. However, she has a secret that she is keeping hidden from everyone, and it is about to come to light.

As the tensions in the village escalate, Rosalin becomes a pawn in the game of secrets and lies. She is caught in the middle of the Clements brothers' wild behavior and the dark history of Old Dai Bevel.

In the end, Rosalin must face the truth about her past and the secrets that she has been keeping. She must also come to terms with the consequences of her actions and the impact that they have had on the people around her.

This novella is a powerful exploration of the human condition, and it is a testament to the power of storytelling. It is a story that will stay with the reader long after the final page has been turned.

Weight: 250g
Dimension: 135 x 207 x 23 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9780857529251