Astonishing Splashes Of Colour : [Paperback]

When an innocent trip to Peter Pan gives Kitty's four brothers an excuse to deny her access to her much-loved nieces, she finds herself in a skewed, vividly coloured world where children become emblems of hope and longing and grief. Still reeling from the loss of her own "child that never was", Kitty is suddenly made shockingly aware of the real reason for her pervasive sense of "non-existence".  Suddenly, her family's oddness, the secrets of her mother's life and death, and the disappearance of her sister come into a new focus, as Kitty struggles for her own identity.

‘A heartbreaking and accomplished debut.’

‘An intense, accomplished portrait of a woman who cannot remember her own mother and will never be a mother herself.’

‘An extremely good first novel: deceptively simple, subtly observed, with a plot that drags you forward like a strong current.’

'An extraordinary, gripping novel. A wonderful piece of writing – it is astonishing that she has never been published before'

'An extremely good first novel: deceptively simple, subtly observed, with a plot that drags you forward like a strong current'

'Fresh, frightening and raw. There’s nothing the least depressing about this nevertheless sad story, certainly nothing remotely sentimental'

Short-listed for the Man Booker Prize in 2003, this absorbing, beautifully written, and perceptive novel perfectly captures the complexity of memory and the dynamics of family life When an innocent trip to see the play "Peter Pan" gives Kitty's four brothers an excuse to deny her access to her much-loved nieces, she finds herself in a skewed, vividly colored world where children become emblems of hope, longing, and grief. Still reeling from the loss of her own child that never was, Kitty is suddenly made shockingly aware of the real reason for her pervasive sense of non-existence. Suddenly, her family's oddness, the secrets of her mother's life and death, and the disappearance of her sister come into a startling new focus--one that leaves Kitty struggling to find own identity.

Margaret Forster said of this book: ‘Fresh, frightening and raw. There’s nothing the least depressing about this nevertheless sad story, certainly nothing remotely sentimental.’

Astonishing Splashes of Colour is Clare Morrall’s first novel. A music teacher with two adult children, she lives and works in Birmingham. Astonishing Splashes of Colour reflects her interest in the dynamics of motherless family life and in synaesthesia – a condition in which emotions are seen as colours.