First edition, first printing. Author's first novel which went on to win the Whitbread prize. Signed by the author. Scarce as a true first printing, the book was reprinted very quickly and a book club edition for the Book People was subsequently published looking very similar to the first edition. Near fine (lightly tanned pages as is typical - at the time several British publishers used poor quality paper - and small general signs of wear) in fine dustjacket.

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Bibliographic Details

Title: Behind the Scenes at the Museum
Publisher: London; Doubleday;
Publication Date: 1995
Language: English
ISBN 10: 0385405952
ISBN 13: 9780385405959
Binding: Hardcover
Edition: 2nd Edition
Dust Jacket Condition: Dust Jacket Included
Signed: Signed by Author(s)

About this title

Synopsis

Atkinson's notoriously scarce first book, an epic family chronicle that received the Whitbread Book of the Year Award. This is the Book People reprint edition, nearly identical to the first edition but with a price of L15.99 rather than L14.99 and with The Book People reference on the copyright page.

Review

"I exist!" exclaims Ruby Lennox upon her conception in 1951, setting the tone for this humorous and poignant first novel in which Ruby at once celebrates and mercilessly skewers her middle-class English family. Peppered with tales of flawed family traits passed on from previous generations, Ruby's narrative examines the lives in her disjointed clan, which revolve around the family pet shop. But beneath the antics of her philandering father, her intensely irritable mother, her overly emotional sisters, and a gaggle of eccentric relatives are darker secrets--including an odd "feeling of something long forgotten"--that will haunt Ruby for the rest of her life. Kate Atkinson earned a Whitbread Prize in 1995 for this fine first effort.

"About this title" may belong to another edition of this title.

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timkcbooks
United Kingdom

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