The Trouble with Goats and Sheep
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4.2 • 163 Ratings
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- £2.99
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- £2.99
Publisher Description
THE SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLER
‘Part whodunnit, part coming of age, this is a gripping debut about the secrets behind every door’ RACHEL JOYCE
‘Cannon is so attuned to other people’s stories… a chronicler both of the human condition and the quotidian details which speak to who we are’ GUARDIAN
‘A very special book’ NATHAN FILER
‘An utter delight’ SARAH WINMAN
‘A delight’ PAULA HAWKINS
‘A treasure chest of a novel’ JULIE COHEN
‘One of the standout novels of the year’ HANNAH BECKERMAN
‘I didn't want the book to end’ CARYS BRAY
‘An excellent debut’ JAMES HANNAH
‘Grace and Tilly are my new heroes’ KATE HAMER
‘A wonderful debut’ JILL MANSELL
‘A modern classic in the making’ SARAH HILARY
‘A stunning debut’ KATIE FFORDE
‘Phenomenal’ MIRANDA DICKINSON
England,1976.
Mrs Creasy is missing and The Avenue is alive with whispers. As the summer shimmers endlessly on, ten-year-olds Grace and Tilly decide to take matters into their own hands.
And as the cul-de-sac starts giving up its secrets, the amateur detectives will find much more than they imagined…
Reviews
‘A splendid debut …Forensic period detail and pithy exchanges between characters give the novel the feel of a Seventies sitcom …a wonderful achievement’ DAILY MAIL
‘Cannon specialises, beautifully, in making concrete the abstract … a superior debut’ SUNDAY TIMES
‘Vibrant and funny…imagine Donna Tartt’s The Secret History, set in 1970s English suburbia’ GUARDIAN
‘Successfully capturing the claustrophobia of suburban life… Cannon paints a sympathetic and nuanced portrait of society’s misfits’ THE INDEPENDENT
‘Beautifully written’ DAILY EXPRESS
‘Sweet, nostalgic and funny’ THE SUN ON SUNDAY
‘Wry, acutely observant and brilliantly claustrophobic’ MAIL ON SUNDAY
‘Fresh and vivid, this intriguing debut is a perceptive coming-of-age tale’ SUNDAY EXPRESS
‘A unique and unforgettable debut’ WALL STREET JOURNAL
‘A very special book that makes us think about ourselves and others more deeply … a terrific pageturner’ NATHAN FILER
‘An utter delight. Perceptive, funny, dark, moving. And so beautifully written. I loved it’ SARAH WINMAN
‘A quirky, moving and beautifully written tale of suburban life in 1970s Britain, The Trouble with Goats and Sheep is a delight from start to finish’ PAULA HAWKINS
About the author
Joanna Cannon graduated from Leicester Medical School and worked as a hospital doctor, before specialising in psychiatry. She lives in the Peak District with her family and her dog. The Trouble With Goats and Sheep is her first novel.
APPLE BOOKS REVIEW
Joanna Cannon’s literary debut arrived with plenty of buzz, and with good reason. Set during the oppressively hot and rainless summer of 1976, The Trouble with Goats and Sheep is very funny and surprisingly poignant. Told from the perspective of 10-year-old Grace—a charming but unreliable narrator—the story centres around the mysterious disappearance of a neighbour named Mrs. Creasy. With impeccable pacing, Cannon teases out the many secrets hidden under the proper veneer of Grace’s suburban environs.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
In her astute, engaging debut, Cannon uses the New Testament parable of the title (in which Jesus separates the good and evil on Judgment Day) to illustrate, wryly and with pinpoint accuracy, the righteous indignation and small-mindedness of a group of gossipy English suburbanites. The citizens ardently believe in their own goodness, and the evil of the man who lives at #11: Walter Bishop. It's 1976, during the hottest summer anyone can remember, when Margaret Creasy disappears. Most think Walter killed Margaret, but it's just as likely (or more) that someone else did; as everyone's confidante, Margaret knew about the secret punishments the citizens inflicted on Walter. Ten-year-old Grace takes a different approach, taking a local vicar at his word when he promises that if her neighbors find God, no one will be lost. She and her best friend, Tilly, will hunt for God undercover among their neighbors to find Margaret. Cannon, a psychiatrist, builds her narrative by slowly revealing backstories as the girls conduct their search, and the pieces of an entirely different sort of mystery than the one under investigation cleverly come together. This is an insightful, offbeat mystery.
Customer Reviews
Strangely good.
A weird yarn, written with a sharply observant pen. Very odd but completely compelling. Such a shame the story didn’t end properly, it just fell off a cliff before the end.
Beautifully Observed
The one star review misses the point, this is perfectly paced for its subject, which I take to be revealing the quirks and foibles of human nature. I loved the use of the stifling summer as a backdrop and of the children’s innocence to reveal the characters and their stories. It is written with wit, pathos and a keen eye for people and place. If you liked “Behind the Scenes at the Museum” or “Emotionally Weird”, you’ll like this (and I thought the ending was completely appropriate for the story).
Oh wow
This is the most amazing book I have ever read, in fact it's one of the most amazing things I've ever had the pleasure of reading. There are so many notes in my margin, unable not to write my thoughts down with every little gem I found that made me think , and made me feel better about life. I want to send my love to the Author , she must be one of the most insightful and clever people ever born . I can't believe how many times I have chuckled to myself out loud whilst reading this, but mostly the way it provokes thought is the most amazing thing, I am blown away.