Publisher's Synopsis
Stories of myths, mothers and monsters.
- At dusk in a scented garden, a refugee names moths. The dying Miss Bethan asks Sofia to do a terrible thing. Something a mother should never ask.
- It started with stealing her clothes and modulating her vowels but now the au pair has stolen Hannah’s identity. Why does no one believe Hannah is the real mother?
- An archaeologist falls in love with an ancient, winged creature. With a child on the way, will he trap her, or will she choose to stay?
- A woman writes lists, reassuringly controlled and positive. They must be followed in order, though her abusive husband mocks her for it. One list begins with a plane ticket to Australia; another to purchasing rope and duct-tape. Bucket lists are for the brave.
THE NAMING OF MOTHS features stories of magical realism, myths and legends re-imagined, where all the characters are undergoing transformation or facing a pivotal moment of change in their lives. People and animals interchange their shapes. Story landscapes flit from fairy-tale woods to urban homes. Here love, hope and kindness weave between the realities of man’s endless talent for cruelty.
