A collection of short stories by a two-time Booker Prize winner. These poignant, sometimes funny, real-life stories date back to the early 1950s. Their characters live in the secluded world of a factory town in the north of England, where the area is “swept by cruel winds and rude gossip.” In the story “King Billy the Gentleman,” the main character must come to terms with the loss of his father and the unsolvable mystery of his fading Irish heritage. "Beauty's Winding Path" tells the story of the power of friendship and (almost) disaster at a landfill. In the story “Learning to Speak Right,” Hilary Mantel corrects her Northern twang with the help of a former actress who has “only one lung” and “a very noticeable Manchester accent,” while the heroine of the story “On the Third Floor” watches in amazement as her mother finds a new personality, regardless of prejudice.