D (A Tale of Two Worlds)

D (A Tale of Two Worlds)

A dazzling modern adventure story from the acclaimed and bestselling author

Summary

Brought to you by Penguin.

A modern-day Dickensian fable and a celebration of friendship and humanity, by the acclaimed author of The Crimson Petal and the White.

It all starts on the morning the letter D disappears from the language.
First, it vanishes from her parents' conversation at breakfast, then from the road signs outside. Soon the local dentist and the neighbour's Dalmatian are missing, and even the Donkey Derby has been called off.

Though she doesn't know why, Dhikilo is summoned to the home of her old history teacher Professor Dodderfield and his faithful Labrador, Nelly Robinson. And this is where our story begins.

Set between England and the wintry land of Liminus, a world enslaved by the monstrous Gamp and populated by fearsome, enchanting creatures, D (Tale of Two Worlds) is a mesmerising tale of friendship and bravery in an uncertain world. Told with simple beauty and warmth, its celebration of moral courage and freethinking is a powerful reminder of our human capacity for strength, hope and justice.

'Faber's writing is so dizzyingly accomplished that he is able to convince you that, just sometimes, the old stories are the best ones' GUARDIAN

'Glorious. A story that will be found and enjoyed and dreamed about for years to come'
NEIL GAIMAN

'If ever a book like this was needed, it is now. Dhikilo is a splendid heroine for our time: She stands for kindness, honesty and humanity. Her triumph will have readers rejoicing' DIANE SETTERFIELD

© Michel Faber 2020 (P) Penguin Audio 2020

Reviews

  • In this rather ebullient and lovely new novel by Michel Faber ... older children and fully-grown adults will certainly find much to relish in it
    THE SCOTSMAN

About the author

Michel Faber

MICHEL FABER is an internationally bestselling and award-winning author of critically acclaimed novels, novellas and short stories, including The Crimson Petal and the White, The Book of Strange New Things, Under the Skin and the poetry collection, Undying: A Love Story. His latest work of fiction, D (A Tale of Two Worlds) is a modern-day fantasy fable which also commemorates the 150th anniversary of Charles Dickens's death. As well as tipping its hat to Dickens, it acknowledges its debt to James Thurber's The Wonderful O, C. S. Lewis's The Chronicles of Narnia and Lewis Carroll's Alice's Adventures in Wonderland. Michel Faber was born in the Netherlands, grew up in Australia, spent twenty-five years in the far north of Scotland, and now lives on the south coast of England.
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