This consummate portrait of English provincial life, an extremely subtle story, told with all Middleton’s artistry and depth of feeling, was joint winner of the Booker Prize in 1974.

Edwin Fisher is on holiday at the English seaside — but this revisiting of childhood haunts is no ordinary holiday. Edwin is seeking to understand the failure of his marriage to Meg, but it turns out that her parents are staying at the same resort — whether by accident or design — and are keen to patch up the relationship. As the past and his enigmatic wife loom larger, deeper truths emerge and the perspective shifts in unexpected ways.