Small Ceremonies - Carol Shields

Judith Gill is writing a biography of a minor Victorian novelist. Judith has also written a novel of her own, but is unhappy with it. Is the plot original - or is it plagiarised? And when she discovers her own novel has just been plundered can she fairly justify the anger she feels? In the perplexing swirl of family life are her husband, who keeps odd balls of wool in a bottom drawer, and her son, who shares his secrets only with a penfriend. Lacking the certainty of youth and not yet reaping the wisdom of older age, Judith Gill is at the centre of a beautifully realised novel that is tender, funny and insightful. 'Small Ceremonies' is the companion novel to 'The Box Garden' .