Description

It is the 1960s, and young Grace’s harsh childhood, in inner Bradford, is made bearable by her kind mam and the friends she hangs out with – until Mam decides their lives would be made better by leaving home. Dad intercepts them and forces Mam to leave without Grace. His puritanical control leads to bullying and isolation … until a braver new friend comes along.

Present-day Grace is the old misfit who frequents the local market, accepting her half-life as punishment for a shameful secret she entrusts only to Doris Day, the singer on the wireless. She finds it impossible to move on after Dad’s death, but it is only when she finds the courage to unlock her door to the ones she hides from most that the recluse uncovers truths which might free her.

Fans of Jennie Godfrey’s books and Alan Bennett’s The Lady In The Van will love Grace.