Tea in the Heather

Tea in the Heather is Kate Roberts's classic tale of family and community in the hill-farms and slate quarries of Gwynedd. Beautifully realized, never idealized, it follows the life of Begw Gruffydd, the little girl who grows from the age of four to nine in the book. With her eye for detail and her ear for dialogue Roberts's portrayal of childhood and childish concerns is charming and convincing. This is a time of friendships and rivalries, small luxuries and swift punishments, exciting excursions and tearful disappointments. And there is the sometimes hostile world of adults to contend with. Translated from the Welsh by Wynn Griffith.