All families are complicated, but some are more complicated than others. And Christmas can only make matters worse.

After Ciara's estranged father is nearly killed by his second wife in a car accident - or was it an accident? - Ciara begins, gingerly, to reenter his life. As her troubled family gather for the holidays, is it too much to hope that they begin to find peace at last? Of course it is.

With cross-dressing twins, new loves and an unpredicatably monstrous matriarch, Christmas was never going to be easy. But it proves both more disastrous and happier than any of them could have guessed.

Jennifer Johnston, whose distinguished career has spanned more than 30 years, has netted the Whitbread Prize among her many awards.

About the Author

Jennifer Johnston is one of the foremost Irish writers of her, or any generation. She has won the Whitbread Prize (THE OLD JEST), the Evening Standard Best First Novel Award (for THE CAPTAINS AND THE KINGS), the Yorkshire Post Award, Best Book of the Year (twice, for THE CAPTAINS AND THE KINGS and HOW MANY MILES TO BABYLON?). She has also been shortlisted for the Booker Prize with SHADOWS ON OUR SKIN.

Reviews
'Johnston is one of the most revered Irish writers, and this, her fifteenth novel, makes us understand why. Her style is simple and colloquial...there are no literary pretensions: story and characters take priority...Foolish Mortals is essentially an uplifting read' * Time Out - Book of the Week *
'A complex, wry domestic drama; a writer of the highest order' * Sunday Telegraph *
'The writing is witty and subtly nuanced and the book is as much about the new Ireland - modern, forward-looking, practical and tolerant - as about the individual characters' * Daily Mail *
Her writing is a joy: dialogue snaps with life while Johnston's distinctive prose is at once supremely comfortable and delightfully brisk * Daily Mail *



Book Information
ISBN 9780755330539
Author Jennifer Johnston
Format Paperback
Page Count 320
Imprint Headline Review
Publisher Headline Publishing Group
Weight(grams) 222g
Dimensions(mm) 198mm * 130mm * 21mm