Longstone BOOKS
A Shield of Coolest Air
A Shield of Coolest Air
By Marion Molteno

about the book
This moving and inspiring novel, set among Somali refugees in London, received rave reviews on 1st publication and won the David Thomas prize for fiction.

Rachel arrives in London from South Africa to make a new home for herself and her three young children while her news-photographer husband jets from one international trouble spot to another. In the school playground she meets another mother, more recently arrived from Somalia and still looking as if she doesn't know where she has landed.

As Rachel gets drawn into the complexities of Haleemo's life story and those of other Somali refugees, she takes on far more than she would once have felt ready to; and unexpected things happen in her own personal life.

'A beautiful piece of fiction, uncovering hidden realities. Its significance extends beyond its setting in Britain to anywhere where cruelty and injustice prevail.' Nawal el Saadawi, Egyptian writer

'This is one of those books I didn't want to end. It affirms the triumph of the human spirit in the face of adversity and honours the power of love. It is moving and beautiful. And if that sounds corny, I don't care.' Northern Star

'So successfully has Molteno breathed life into her characters that we get a real sense of their vulnerability, their fury, their sadness and their astonishing resilience.' Independent on Sunday

Price: £9.95
ISBN: 978 0 9554373 4 2
To order this title please email sales@longstonebooks.co.uk

Books by Marion Molteno are distributed in the UK by www.centralbooks.com, in New Zealand by www.addenda.co.nz, in Australia by www.towerbooks.com.au
 
also by this author
Somewhere more Simple

A book it's difficult to put down. An absorbing exploration of coming to terms with love, loss and belonging, set against the vividly evoked atmosphere of the Isles of Scilly.
A small community, cut off from Cornwall by thirty miles of sea. At the whim of Atlantic storms. A landscape lit by a shifting kaleidoscope of colour and light . Cari returns as a young teacher to the islands that captured her imagination in childhood. Now they take her way beyond known waters. . Find out more...
A Language in Common

A vivid collection of stories based on the author's years an an adult education worker, mainly among women from India and Pakistan. The society in which they find themselves is alien, often hostile. Yet as they discover more about each other friendships develop across the boundaries of language and culture. Find out more...
copyright (c) Longstone Books Ltd, 2009 | webdesign by rebecca joynt