Super girl - Ruth Thomas

Delicately poised on the cusp of melancholy, fragility and folly, her stories offer a fresh take on the contradictions of human nature.

A young mother is alienated by the small talk of a 'new mums' coffee morning; a poet achieves success after thirty years of writing only to discover that nobody understands what he is saying; a father loses his shoes at a children's party; a grandfather shares the pain and pleasure of his eightieth birthday with his baby grand-daughter; and, in the title story, a sensible young woman who everyone thinks of as a 'super girl' has her reputation thrown into jeopardy when an unexpected caller arrives at her babysitting job.

Super Girl is Ruth Thomas's third story collection. It confirms her reputation as an intriguing and original voice in fiction.