Odd Hours

(Hardback)

Available Formats

Publishing Details

Classifications

Physical Properties

Description

'Odd Hours wove a spell on me, by the end my heart was VERY full of love and happiness' - Marian Keyes

For Gosia, life is something that happens to other people. About to turn thirty, she works as a cashier in a large supermarket and shares a flat in London's Zone 3 with Lyndsey, a judgemental beautician who keeps a diary - Gosia's favourite reading material.

When the man of her dreams sidles up to her checkout, the quest for his affections propels Gosia to do things she has never done before. Quitting her job to become a personal trainer, she makes a very unlikely friend in Steve, invests in a self-help bible, ups her romance skills by going on practice dates, travels back to Poland, falls out with her mother and loses her job.

The novel carries us through suburban London, with its cheap cafes, depressing supermarkets, understaffed libraries, second-rate gyms and drab, rental flats. Sharp, discerning, tender and original, Ania celebrates the unknown and imperfect routes to happiness and fulfilment in a timely excavation of the myth of a perfect life.

Reviews

'Dark, sharply funny and utterly rewarding ... Reminded me of the brilliant books by Kirsty Capes ... Highly recommended' -- Liz Hyder
'This enigmatic and idiosyncratic gem is eccentric, quirky and utterly original' -- Kevin O'Sullivan (Irish Examiner Book of 2022)
'Bas writes so well about that state of being young and trying so hard to make connections' -- Marianne Levy
'Odd Hours is a brilliant satire on the struggles of life in the zero-hours sector ... An auspicious debut' -- Paul Mendez

Author Bio

Ania Bas grew up in Poland and moved to the UK 15 years ago to pursue a career in the arts. She has worked with Tate, Whitechapel Gallery and others as an artist and arts organiser. She began writingOdd Hours on the Faber Academy 'Writing a Novel' course.