Ladder of Years

This is another quiet masterpiece from the author of "The Accidental Tourist" - a funny, poignant and unsettling novel about marriage, families and the triumph of hope over experience. On a beach holiday, 40-year-old Cordelia Grinstead walks away from her family, and just keeps walking. She re-invents herself in a new town as a serious-minded woman without ties. But gradually the messy emotions of family life catch up with her once more.