From the revered author of Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrell and Piranesi comes a bewitching seasonal novella about a young woman who can talk to animals and the mysterious events that befall her in the woods.
From the internationally bestselling and prize-winning author of Piranesi and Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell, an enchanting and haunting Christmas short . story. A small hardback edition featuring an afterword by the author.
‘A church is a sort of wood. A wood is a sort of church. They’re the same thing really.’
Nineteen-year-old Merowdis Scott is an unusual girl. She can talk to animals and trees – and she is only ever happy when she is walking in the woods.
One snowy afternoon, out with her dogs and Apple the pig, Merowdis encounters a blackbird and a fox. As darkness falls, a strange figure enters in their midst – and the path of her life is changed forever.
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing PLC
ISBN: 9781526675217
Number of pages: 64
Dimensions: 198 x 129 mm
This short story from the Women’s Prize winner (Piranesi) revolves around 19-year-old Merowdis, who can talk to trees and animals, and whose life changes when she steps into the woods one day - i paper, The best new books out in October
Rich in detail and beautiful writing … Confirms Clarke’s brilliance at storytelling, even in miniature form - Observer
Spellbinding - Dua Lipa
Victoria Sawdon provides winsome black and white illustrations to this elegant story, which has the quiet hush of snowy weather but comes with a bite of frosty other- worldliness that is disquietingly shivery - Daily Mail
Beautiful … It’s the original form of fantasy … with very simple elements and very simply told it seems to be talking about something bigger. I thought it was enchanting in the best sense of the word - Alan Moore
A beautifully crafted and haunting tale that has the same enchanting, immersive and transportive storytelling as Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell. In this novella, Clarke explores themes of magic, nature, and the passage of time, creating a rich atmosphere that is utterly beguiling … With the same Piranesi whimsy and mystery, this is perfect for a cold winter’s night - Glamour
As beloved fantasy writer Clarke's atmospheric and gently funny fable about the holiness of nature, so gracefully illustrated by Victoria Sawdon, unfurls, Merowdis experiences a transformative encounter. - Booklist
A short fairytale-esque tale that is both poignant and enchanting - Fantasy-Hive
Clarke continues to show her impressive capability to craft a setting in a few sentences … Light in plot, heavy in theme, and sprinkled with magic, The Wood at Midwinter offers a perfect way to ready yourself for the incoming autumn season. Be prepared to cosy up and envelop yourself in the snowy woodland alongside Merowdis and her animal friends - nb Magazine
Praise for Susanna Clarke: 'Clarke creates a world beyond our wildest imagination that also tells us something profound about what it is to be human - Bernardine Evaristo, Women's Prize Chair of Judges 2021
What a world Susanna Clarke conjures into being - David Mitchell
For fans of Clarke, this is a must-buy ... The perfect mid-Autumn read - Anything Goes
A miraculous and luminous feat of storytelling - Madeline MIller
Like Hilary Mantel, Clarke made the very notion of genre seem quaint - Guardian
One of the greatest and most interesting writers of fantasy in the past hundred years or more - Times Literary Supplement
A treasure, washed up upon a forgotten shore, waiting to be discovered - Erin Morgenstern
Purely joyful reading - Naomi Alderman
Utterly compelling – bewildering, intense, moving, shocking, combining a haunting fantasy with sharp insight - Rowan Williams
This is a beautifully illustrated story that calls to mind classic myth. If you are already a fan of Susanna Clarke's atmospheric writing then you will love this, and if you have been wondering if you'd like... More
I absolutely loved this!
It's a really beautiful short story, set in the world of Jonathan Norrell and Mr Strange (although you wouldn't necessarily know this if it wasn't mentioned by Clarke in an...
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A warm blanket on a cold night. A dusky, wintry tale of mystical woodlands and saintly portents. Susanna Clarke's prose is, as usual, refined and expert, pointed, whimsical, romantic.
It's also great to...
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