The Republic Of Love

Fay is a folklorist whose passion for mermaids provides her with a sense of continuity with the past. Tom is the host of a late-night radio show, Married and divorced three times before his fortieth birthday, he nevertheless hopes that next time around he will at last make the right choice. Both for Fay and Tom, falling in love at first sight is at once an immense surprise and the cause of not a little trepidation. Carol Shields’s novels include Larry’s Party (1997) – winner of the 1998 Orange Prize – and The Stone Diaries (1993), winner of the Pulitzer Prize and short-listed for the Booker Prize. She has lived in Canada since 1957, and is the Chancellor of the University of Winnipeg.