“Plucking a glass of champagne from a passing waiter, Lily was desperate for a cigarette, but none of the ladies were smoking. “Can you see my painting?” “There it is,

“None too bright in the head, that’s what they said of him, that’s what he thought they said, him standing there in the supermarket, on one foot and then the

“Some things you can see coming, like when sunlight fades, dusk falls, darkness rushes to pervade. It’s inevitable. Like Enoch’s rivers of blood, staining London streets in ’81, ’85, 2011;

“I will tell God everything The sharp metal pieces Taken out of my stomach Will all come with me” Extract from ‘The War Torn Child’ – included in the showcase

“I hate flying. I heaved my bag up into the luggage compartment and clambered into my seat. I had to tuck my legs in and half-stand up a couple of

“The second time I saw Lori I fell in love with her eyebrows. Lovely dark little dancers, arching like caterpillars above her brown doe eyes. They bent into the worry

“Girl ran down the stairs, out the front door and into the night. She ran between the pastel fronted houses whose flower plastered walls hid who knew what monsters, towards

“The curve of orange sun nudged the horizon and inched its way above the pea-green fields that quilted King’s County. Silhouetted against it, a young man crouched on a turn

“I open my eyes to see a Mexican wave of women dashing to their seats, each breathing a loud sigh of relief—except for Big Mama. She’s already slumped in her

“As soon as we leave the building he lights a cigarette and puffs hungrily. He sags against the wall, spent. I feel pretty much the same, overwhelmed on his behalf,

“This future life is unknown to you. Now at this moment you look up at your unmoving, silent waiting audience. You half-raise your left arm and reach for the cup

“The bird swooped down over them, landing a short distance away, near the dragon. They seemed to know each other, and stood nose to beak for a few seconds, making

“They pick me up from the police station in the early morning. I am not surprised to see them even though it is over a two hundred mile drive and

“A leap away from becoming ghost. She stood erect, her bathing floral suit, sugared marigolds, a petal cap. She knew it wouldn’t last.¡Saltá, mamá!—Jump. Extract from ‘Gnarl’ – included in

“Priest and wise-woman have left him alone with a man whose brothers are afeard to come near him and whose heriot, should he die, will be a five-toed cockerel. At

“The day it happened was a black day. I’d had a good run of late, but still get them sometimes. I’ve learnt to take action otherwise the malaise will fester, so

“As arranged, I met with Satyan in a solitary shack found where the margins of the city met open countryside. ‘Welcome to the Hanuman Chai Shop. This is where I

“Routine was the word. I liked routine, a route to somewhere in time. A rope with which to pull myself along, by sheer force of will, to the other side

Hello, my name is Scruffy, and I’ve lost my blanket. Where can it be? It’s snuggly and warm and smells just like me. I know, I’ll sniff it out! Extract

“The carpet on the stairs is thin and tattered. A thousand shuffling footfalls have worn it bare. The bedroom upstairs has a bed and a chest of drawers, and nothing