Tim Winton's characters are ordinary people who battle to maintain loyalty against all odds; women, children, men whose relationships strain under pressure and leave them bewildered, hoping, sometimes fleeing, but often finding strength in forgotten parts of themselves.

'Like Hemingway, Winton writes prose in which you can hear the thumping of the heart of the long-distance swimmer, or the rasping heaving breath of the asthmatic.' Times on Sunday

'A poignant collection of spare, understated tales about ordinary people battling to preserve the relationships they treasure in the face of many troubles.' Cleo

'Shows more clearly than anybody ever has how catastrophe, suffering and love can survive together in one little room.' Los Angeles Times