A new state of the nation novel from the bestselling author of Middle England, spanning the huge social change that has taken place in Britain from 1945 to 2020

In the Birmingham suburb of Bournville, a family celebrate VE Day in 1945. With the joy of such an occasion there also come larger national questions about the nature of the horrific war the country has just been through. Following this family through generations as they navigate seventy-five years of drastic social change, from wartime nostalgia and English exceptionalism to the royal family, the World Cup and coronavirus, domestic secrets and national myths leave characters and a country adrift, bewildered and divided. A novel of rare humour and humanity, holding up a mirror reflecting our country, our history and ourselves.

Jonathan Coe was born a few miles from Bournville in 1961. The author of political satires such as What a Carve Up! and Number 11, and family sagas such as The Rotters’ Club and The Rain Before It Falls, his novels have won prizes at home and abroad, including Costa Novel of the Year and the Prix du Livre Europeen (both for Middle England).