The Child In Time

Stephen remained as always, though barely consciously, on the watch for children, for a five-year old girl. It was more than a habit, for a habit could be broken. A single moment is enough to shatter a lifetime. Stephen Lewis, a successful author of children's books, takes his three-year-old daughter on a routine Saturday morning trip to the supermarket. While waiting in line, his attention is distracted and his daughter is kidnapped. Just like that. From there, Lewis spirals into bereavement that has effects on his relationship with his wife, his psyche and his perception of time itself; changing, at first immeasurably, then imperceptibly, the entire course of his life. ‘This is a novel about childhood, but also about growing up and accepting responsibility. It’s a study of family, of the unexpected ways of love and how it curls through time; how time itself curls.’ – The GuardianA writer who has no doubt changed the landscape of British fiction, Ian McEwan’s diverse, experimental literary portfolio encompasses Gothic short stories, dark psychological dramas such as The Cement Garden and Enduring Love as well as the spy thriller Sweet Tooth, an epic of wartime, Atonement, and state-of-the-nation novels Amsterdam (for which he won the Booker Prize), Saturday, Solar and The Children Act.