Fishing the Sloe-Black River , Paperback

An ageing nun is tracked to ground by her sister; a garrulous beautician must lay out the corpse of a loved one.

These are eloquent tales of exile and displacement, of characters always in search of a way back home or of a way to leave it. Mischievous, assured and versatile, Colum McCann's collection of short stories marks him out as one of our best contemporary writers.

"A gifted and determined stylist, Colum McCann seems to have taken a vow never to write a dull line." (New York Times Book Review)

"Orwell would have been proud to journey with a writer as good as Colum McCann." (Irish Sunday Independent)