{"product_id":"notes-from-the-henhouse-9781399612494","title":"Notes from the Henhouse","description":"\u003cb\u003eBook Synopsis\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eThis collection of autobiographical essays from the inimitable Elspeth Barker, author of the beloved modern classic \u003ci\u003eO Caledonia, \u003c\/i\u003eis a delightful portrait of a riotous, rapturous, remarkable life\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eTrade Review\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003eElspeth Barker could write about anything and have you longing for more . . .\u003ci\u003e Notes from the Henhouse \u003c\/i\u003eis a book for which one feels incredulous gratitude. How come, you think, she is not better known? The book deserves to be permanently on the bedside table - to cheer, reassure and inspire . . . [Barker's] essays are sympathetic little masterpieces to which she brings storytelling capacity and an intensity that absorbs as the best fiction does -- Kate Kellaway * THE OBSERVER *\u003cbr\u003eBarker's prose is poetic but not inflated, visceral but smooth... Notes from the Henhouse is a vibrant, jubilant testament to both her life and work -- Lucy Scholes * DAILY TELEGRAPH *\u003cbr\u003eElspeth Barker speaks her mind fearlessly, and her mind is scintillating. Witty, caustic, erudite - as fiercely funny in writing about heartbreak and mortality as she is about drunken dinner parties and delinquent dogs -- Lucy Hughes-Hallett\u003cbr\u003eA collection of utterly captivating essays about love, children, pigs, dogs, jealousy, grief, ponds, bereavement, widowhood . . . I would also recommend her only novel, \u003ci\u003eO Caledonia\u003c\/i\u003e, as an optimal curl-up read. I hope I'm not making her sound cosy - she was much too sharp and original for that -- India Knight * THE TIMES *\u003cbr\u003eA masterclass in the art of the personal essay. These pieces - about pigs, and loss, and the delicate balance between art and life - are vital, and funny, and true. Though memoir, they have a powerful ambiguity, like the very best short stories -- Charlie Gilmour, author of FEATHERHOOD\u003cbr\u003eWhat a pleasure it was to read \u003ci\u003eNotes from the Henhouse\u003c\/i\u003e. An original voice, gothic, poetic and exuberantly funny -- Esther Freud, author of HIDEOUS KINKY\u003cbr\u003eThis book is heaven. Elspeth Barker writes like no one else -- Olivia Laing, author of CRUDO\u003cbr\u003eElspeth Barker is magnificent, the most underrated British writer of the last century. I loved\u003ci\u003e Notes from the Henhouse\u003c\/i\u003e so much. Laugh-out-loud funny, sad and beautiful, these essays are a revelation, full of love and joy and life lessons (never go for a man who will intentionally step on a frog and be pragmatic about hens). I will read them again and again -- Camilla Grudova, author of CHILDREN OF PARADISE\u003cbr\u003eBrings joy to the bleak midwinter -- Belinda Bamber * COUNTRY AND TOWN HOUSE MAGAZINE *\u003cbr\u003eHer writing is glorious and this book of essays is a wonder. Every essay is a masterpiece in miniature . . . Barker is a gift and so is this book. Buy one for yourself and one for those you love. It is \u003ci\u003ethat\u003c\/i\u003e sort of book -- Natasha Poliszczuk * BOOK(ISH) *\u003cbr\u003eElspeth Barker is a writer whose work is so delightful there's almost no point in reviewing it. Why not just fill the page with quotations? . . . Those who have read Barker's only novel know the sweet bitterness and wild glitter of her writing . . . Enchanting -- Louisa Young * PERSPECTIVE *\u003cbr\u003eJoyous, startling, funny, lush, dark and complex. The perfect stocking filler, I'd say, for the clever women in your life. -- Melanie Reid * THE TIMES *","brand":"Orion Publishing Co","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":48738906276183,"sku":"9781399612494","price":17.09,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0817\/1739\/5799\/files\/9781399612494.jpg?v=1720050547","url":"https:\/\/bookcurl.com\/products\/notes-from-the-henhouse-9781399612494","provider":"Book Curl","version":"1.0","type":"link"}