Shy creatures : a novel / Clare Chambers.
"The London suburb of Croydon, 1964: Helen Hansford is unmarried and in her thirties. Something of a disappointment to her middle-class parents, she's an art therapist at the Westbury Park psychiatric hospital, where she has been having a rebellious love affair with her colleague Gil, a dashing but married doctor. One spring afternoon they receive a call about a disturbance at a derelict, vine-covered Victorian house a few miles up the road. There the police find a mute, thirty-seven-year-old man called William Tapping, his hair and beard down to his waist. It appears he lives in the old house with his elderly, frail aunt, who expires as soon as she's admitted to the hospital. No one knows why William has been shut away for decades, unseen by neighbors, with only his two now-deceased aunts for company. Westbury Park becomes his refuge. When it emerges that William is not only sane but a talented artist, Helen comes to see him as something of a personal project. But as she tries to solve the puzzle of the Hidden Man's past, Helen's own carefully constructed life of secrets begins to unravel..."-- Provided by publisher.
Record details
- ISBN: 9780063258228
- ISBN: 0063258226
- ISBN: 9780063423145
- ISBN: 0063423146
- Physical Description: 391 pages ; 24 cm
- Edition: First United States edition
- Publisher: New York : Mariner Books, [2024]
- Copyright: ©2024
Content descriptions
- General Note:
- Originally published in the United Kingdom in 2024 by Weidenfeld & Nicolson.
- Bibliography, etc. Note:
- Includes bibliographical references (pages 387-388).
Search for related items by subject
- Subject:
- Secrecy > Fiction.
Adultery > Fiction.
Man-woman relationships > Fiction.
Psychiatric hospitals > Fiction.
Psychiatric hospital patients > Fiction.
Art teachers > Fiction.
Artists > Fiction.
Social isolation > Fiction.
Nineteen sixties > Fiction.
England > Social life and customs > 20th century > Fiction. - Genre:
- Coming-of-age fiction
Detective and mystery fiction.
Historical fiction.
Novels.
Available copies
- 28 of 30 copies available at NC Cardinal. (Show)
- 1 of 1 copy available at Onslow County Public Library.
Holds
- 0 current holds with 30 total copies.
Other Formats and Editions
Show Only Available Copies
| Location | Call Number / Copy Notes | Barcode | Shelving Location | Status | Due Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Swansboro Branch Library | FIC CHAMBERS (Text) | 36015001915277 | Adult Fiction | Available | - |
