DELIGHT IN THE MANY JOYS OF A SWISS MOUNTAIN VILLAGE THROUGH THE EYES OF ITS BIGGEST FAN – GRACIE! JOIN IN AS SHE SWOOSHES DOWN THE SLOPES ON HER SLED, VISITS THE FARM NEXT DOOR, FLIES HIGH IN A HOT-AIR BALLOON AND EXPLORES THE GLORIOUS VALLEY AROUND HER. WHETHER RIDING ON THE TRAIN OR IN A HORSE-DRAWN SLEIGH, LEARNING TO SAY “CHICKEN” IN COW LANGUAGE OR WAITING FOR PÈRE NOËL, GRACIE NEVER FAILS TO CHARM WITH HER SPARKLING ACCOUNT OF LIFE IN CHÂTEAU-D‛OEX, HER VERY FAVORITE VILLAGE IN SWITZERLAND.

WHAT WONDROUS TREATS GRACIE HAS IN STORE FOR US AS SHE EXPLORES THE “CAMPI” AND “CALLE” OF THE CITY ON THE LAGOON. MANY THROUGHOUT THE AGES HAVE EXTOLLED VENICE‛S COUNTLESS CHARMS BUT NONE QUITE LIKE GRACIE. THE CAPTIVATING COCKER REGALES US WITH HER KEENEYED OBSERVATIONS AS SHE SNIFFS HER WAY AROUND THE “SERENISSIMA.”

The rediscovered classic: an unforgettable memoir by a trailblazing black woman in post-war London, introduced by Bernardine Evaristo ('I dare anyone to read it and not come away shocked, moved and entertained ... One of the unsung heroines of Black British literature.')

First published in 1958, A Penknife in My Heart tells the story of how two men - total strangers - establish the perfect alibis by arranging to switch victims. Ned Stowe will kill Stuart Hammer's wealthy uncle for which service Hammer is to eliminate Stowe's neurotic wife, Helena. The men plot and the plan - with its horrifyingly simple premise - is solidified... 'More convincing, more detailedly thought-through than Highsmith's [Strangers on a Train].' - The New York Times