*SHORTLISTED FOR the BOOKER INTERNATIONAL PRIZE 2020* One of the best debut novels I have ever read. Shockingly good . . . A classic. Max Porter the sensational Dutch bestseller: Exceptional (Financial Times) Exhilarating (Independent) Luminous (Observer) Beautifully wild (Guardian) I asked God if he please couldnt take my brother Matthies instead of my rabbit. Amen. Ten-year-old Jas has a unique way of experiencing her universe: the feeling of udder ointment on her skin as protection against harsh winters; the texture of green warts, like capers, on migrating toads; the sound of blush words that arent in the Bible. But when a tragic accident ruptures the family, her curiosity warps into a vortex of increasingly disturbing fantasies - unlocking a darkness that threatens to derail them all. A Bestselling sensation in the Netherlands, Marieke Lucas Rijnevelds radical debut novel is studded with images of wild, violent beauty: a world of language unlike any other, exquisitely captured in Michele Hutchisons translation. the MOST TALKED ABOUT DEBUT NOVEL OF 2020 ALREADY [Dazed & Confused] ONE OF VOGUES TOP FIVE DEBUTS OF 2020 ONE of the OBSERVERS HIGHLIGHTS OF 2020 ONE of the GUARDIANS TOP TEN BEST NEW BOOKS IN TRANSLATION