ScoopLord Copper, newspaper magnate and proprietor of the Daily Beast, has always prided himself on his intuitive flair for spotting ace reporters. That is not to say he has not made the odd blunder, however, and may in a moment of weakness make another. Acting on a dinner party tip from Mrs Algernon Smith, he feels convinced that he has hit on just the chap to cover a promising little war in the African Republic of Ishmaelia. One of Waugh's most exuberant

Salam injects a wry humour into this tale of secrets

vivid and honest' - Emma Donoghue

Or that he failed to get into the cricket team

On the other side of the Shadowpass

than did it

Translated by Sandra Smith

'Will break your heart and open your eyes' Heather Morris

they have only one way out

Underlying it all is the tale of telling the tale

to love or to live

Based on the real history of an English village during the Great Plague

she knows the place