Penelope Lively

"Maria likes to be alone with her thoughts. She talks to animals and objects, and generally prefers them to people. But whilst on holiday she begins to hear things that aren't there-- a swing creaking, a dog barking-- and when she sees a Victorian embroidered picture, Maria feels a strange connection with the ten-year-old, Harriet, who stitched it. But what happened to her? As Maria becomes more lost in Harriet's world, she grows convinced that something...

Relates the adventures of a variety of creatures--mice, spiders, pill bugs--that live, seen and unseen, in the nooks and crannies of an ordinary house.

Popular English literary novelist and recipient of the prestigious Booker Prize, Penelope Lively deftly captures the multi-layered drama and reminiscences that lie behind everyday events. Heat Wave is her ironic tale of obsession, love, and disillusionment. Freelance editor Pauline has planned an idyllic working holiday in her summer cottage, enjoying life in the country and her young grandson. Her daughter and son-in-law will spend their holidays...