Tom Shapcott has been writing fiction and poetry since 1964. As well, he has been Director of the Literature Board, Copyright Agency Limited and Professor of Creative Writing at the University of Adelaide. This new collection of short stories explores a range of human emotions and conditions.

‘Refuge’ looks at the experience of migration, at once alienating and liberating. In ‘The Red Hat’, adolescence and the way relationships and friendships change are central themes. In the longest story, ‘Sunshine Beach’, newly widowed Charlie, in the face of his grief, retreats to the world and experience of his childhood. He cuts his ties with his former life and moves to an area where he holidayed as a child, where he lets the memories of those days wash over him – especially his adolescent infatuation with Beatrice.

I’ve always admired Shapcott’s prose and it seems a shame that he has not achieved a greater recognition. These stories are a wonderful example of his creativity and insightfulness.