The Earth Hums in B Flat
- 6 May 2010
- 9781847673053
- £10.99
- 346 pp
- 128×198mm
- 19 Mar 2009
- 9781847675552
- £7.99
- 346 pp
In a few words
A compelling, brilliantly-received debut from a moving, nostalgic and truly authentic new voice
In a few words
A compelling, brilliantly-received debut from a moving, nostalgic and truly authentic new voice
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.
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 SundayThe 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. These lives, and the characters who live them, are so vividly drawn and Mari Strachan's careful unraveling of the secrets they hide is 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 SundayMore about
the book
Gwenni Morgan is not like any other girl in this small Welsh town. Inquisitive, bookish and full of spirit, she can fly in her sleep and loves playing detective. So when a neighbour mysteriously vanishes, and no one seems to be asking the right questions, Gwenni decides to conduct her own investigation.
Mari Strachan’s unforgettable novel was one of the most acclaimed and successful debuts of 2009. It is a heart-breaking and hugely enjoyable story.
More about
the book
Gwenni Morgan is not like any other girl in this small Welsh town. Inquisitive, bookish and full of spirit, she can fly in her sleep and loves playing detective. So when a neighbour mysteriously vanishes, and no one seems to be asking the right questions, Gwenni decides to conduct her own investigation.
Mari Strachan’s unforgettable novel was one of the most acclaimed and successful debuts of 2009. It is a heart-breaking and hugely enjoyable story.
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 TimesStrachan's prose is pitch perfect. A gorgeous debut.
Eithne Farry
Marie ClaireAt 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
IndependentA fondness for unorthodoxy gives [Strachan's] girl-growing-up story its unique flavour . . . A warm and touching, but blessedly unsentimental, novel.
Kate Saunders
The TimesStrachan's prose is pitch perfect. A gorgeous debut.
Eithne Farry
Marie ClaireAt 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
IndependentAt times comical, but at other moments deeply moving. An impressive and wonderfully absorbing debut, which evokes the atmosphere of a small Welsh town with wit and precision.
Mari Strachan
View profileMari Strachan and her husband live in the hills of Ceredigion, Wales. The Earth Hums in B Flat was her first book, and she is the author of Blow on a Dead Man’s Embers.
Mari Strachan
View profileMari Strachan has been immersed in books all her life. She has worked as a librarian in academic, school, public, private and prison libraries. She has also been a book reviewer, researcher, translator, copy writer and web editor. She and her husband live part-time on a tiny smallholding in the hills of Ceredigion, West Wales, and part-time on a narrowboat on the Grand Union Canal in London, where much of The Earth Hums in B Flat was written.
