Description

‘A charming account of a daughter, a house and a fastidious dad’ Sunday Times

Shelley Klein grew up in the Scottish Borders, in a house designed on a modernist open-plan grid. With colourful glass panels set against a forest of trees, it was like living in a work of art. Her father, Bernat Klein, was a textile designer whose pioneering colours and textures were a major contribution to 1960s and 70s style.

Thirty years on, Shelley moves back home to care for her father, now in his eighties: the house has not changed and neither has his uncompromising vision – or his distinctive way of looking at the world. Told with great tenderness and humour, this is Shelley’s account of looking after an adored yet maddening parent and a piercing portrait of the grief that followed his death.

‘A sad, funny, utterly fascinating book about families, home and how to say goodbye’ Mark Haddon

‘Original, moving and bracingly honest… often hilarious’ Blake Morrison, Guardian

‘It is strange that grief should produce such a life-affirming book, but it has. Read it for the solace it contains, or for its captivating descriptions. Either way, it’s a delight’ Telegraph

Publisher Review

Enthralling... a fascinating exploration of the influence of a domestic setting on mind and spirit, as well as of a fraught father-daughter relationship -- Christina Hardyment * The Times * Original, moving and bracingly honest... often hilarious... Each room has particular memories for Klein. And her journey through them is also a psychological quest, an attempt to understand how the house shaped her personality and whether she can ever get free of her attachment -- Blake Morrison * Guardian * A luminous book, full of light and colour, and a remarkable reflection on childhood and untold stories -- Edmund de Waal [A] finespun, magical new grief memoir... a beautifully structured book... Klein is a witty observer, even in the case of her own sorrow, which she rifles through and puzzles over with wry candour. Desolation and humour are expertly balanced throughout... I suppose it is strange that grief should produce such a life-affirming book, but it has. Read it for the solace it contains, or for its captivating descriptions. Either way, it's a delight. -- Lucy Davies * The Telegraph * A sad, funny, utterly fascinating book about families, home and how to say goodbye -- Mark Haddon