The Levels by Peter Benson

The Levels by Peter Benson

Drove House has always loomed large over village life. Boarded-up for years, it is reputed to be brimming with ghosts, and is shunned by the locals – all except Billy, for whom it has been the site of childhood dens and secret adolescent adventures. When the captivating Muriel moves in with her bohemian mother, they sweep out the ghosts and breathe new life into both the house and Billy’s quiet rural existence. After an idyllic summer, though, Muriel returns to her life in London, and the newly empty Drove House becomes the backdrop for Billy’s struggle to reconcile the vanishing agricultural lifestyle he has inherited with the glimpses of a baffling new way of life Muriel seemed to offer. Charting the conflict between these two competing worlds, Peter Benson’s award-winning first novel is at once a lyrical portrait of the landscape of the Somerset Levels and a touching evocation of first love.

Funny and painful and beautifully done so that we recognise life with a gasp* The Times *
A very apt and unillusioned sort of modern pastoral, blessed with the kind of narrative gift that’s like perfect pitch. * The Guardian *

Peter Benson’s first novel, The Levels, won the Guardian Fiction Prize. This was followed by A Lesser Dependency, winner of the Encore Award, and The Other Occupant, which was awarded the Somerset Maugham Award. Peter Benson has also published short stories, volumes of poetry and screenplays, some adapted for TV and radio. His works have been translated into many languages.

SKU	Unavailable
ISBN 13	9781846881916
ISBN 10	1846881919
Title	The Levels
Author	Peter Benson
Condition	Unavailable
Binding Type	Paperback
Publisher	Alma Books Ltd
Year published	2012-04-12
Number of pages	160
Cover note	Book picture is for illustrative purposes only, actual binding, cover or edition may vary.