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Three Things About Elsie

LONGLISTED FOR THE WOMEN’S PRIZE FOR FICTION 2018

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Three Things About Elsie

By: Joanna Cannon
Narrated by: Paula Wilcox
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The Sunday Times Bestseller

‘Lovely, lovely, lovely… Sue Townsend meets Kate Atkinson meets Nina Stibbe’ MARIAN KEYES

‘Powerful and profound’ Guardian

‘Another sure-fire hit’ Daily Mail

‘Funny, melancholy, acutely observant’ Sunday Express

‘Cannon is so attuned to other people’s stories… a chronicler both of the human condition and the quotidian details which speak to who we are’ Guardian

84-year-old Florence has fallen in her flat at Cherry Tree Home for the Elderly. As she waits to be rescued, she considers the charming new resident who looks exactly like a man she once knew – a man who died sixty years ago. His arrival has stirred distant memories she and Elsie thought they’d laid to rest. Lying prone in the front room, Florence wonders if a terrible secret from her past is about to come to light …

 Fiction Genre Fiction Literary Fiction Literature & Fiction Mystery Small Town & Rural Women's Fiction Feel-Good Heartfelt Tear-jerking Witty Suspense Comedy
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Critic reviews

Praise for Three Things About Elsie:
‘Compassionate, thoughtful and tender, it is a novel exploring the pain of nostalgia and personal truths so painful we hide them even from ourselves’ HANNAH BECKERMAN, Observer
‘A tale of ordinary lives and buried secrets … a well-written, entertaining, effortless read with some arresting insights’ Mail on Sunday
‘Charming, wise and profoundly human. I lived every page of this book’ ERIN KELLY
‘Powerful and profound’ Guardian
‘Irresistibly good-hearted … captivating’ Telegraph
‘Another sure-fire hit for Cannon … abounds with Alan Bennett-esque humour, as well as heart-wrenching sadness’ Daily Mail
‘Emotional, sweet, funny, hauntingly sad and poignant. I loved it’ DJ Sara Cox, Stella
‘Funny, melancholy, acutely observant … your heart will finally crack in two on the last page’ Sunday Express
‘A warm, wise novel – brilliantly entertaining – that also manages to be a timely and profound take on ageing. I loved it’ KATE HAMER
‘Light yet heartbreaking, a joy to read’ i Newspaper
‘Funny, touching, and peppered with astute observations … a future classic’ CLARE MACKINTOSH, author of I Let You Go
‘[Cannon] conveys the legion indignities of overlooked old age with touching perception’ Sunday Times Culture
‘A moving, bittersweet story’ Good Housekeeping
‘Cannon is on her way to becoming a national treasure – no one does quirky, funny and soul-searing the way she does’ Emerald Street
‘Poignant, witty and original’ Woman & Home
‘More brilliant, generous storytelling… (a) funny, melancholic tale’ Psychologies
All stars
Most relevant
I started listening to this book because I needed something light to listen to. It is utterly brilliant as my heading says. I never would, nor did I, have guessed the ending in a zillion years. I really loved this book from the very first page until the last page.

Utterly Brilliant

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I am so glad my daughter told me to read this! This isn't just a book with some witticisms about old people. Almost every phrase, sentence or word is picked very very deliberately. It makes you want to read out bits to anyone standing around. A lovely tale beautifully narrated. I recommend it to everyone but would also love schools to have it on their reading lists. Well done to the author and also to Paula Wilcox the narrator.

The most beautifully observed book!

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A must read for everyone in health care or for anyone who wants an excellent read

A must read

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I don’t often write a review even though I listen to hundreds of books every year but this book is an exception. The writing of this novel is amazing and all the way through there are phrases that make you stop and gossip at sheer brilliance and want to remember them all.

If you only listen to one but this year I do recommend listening to this one.

Brilliant wordsmith

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Great well crafted story. Read beautifullly by Paula Wilcox. Kind of a detective story with a twist. And very funny too.

Brilliant book

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