Treats

‘It was the curse of the modern age, options; who needed options, when everything was essentially meaningless?’So says one of the characters in Lara Williams’s extraordinary debut story collection. Treats is a break-up album of tales covering relationships, the tyranny of choice and self navigation. This fresh, beguiling new voice paints a portrait of contemporary womanhood, balancing wry humour with a pervading sense of alienation.Williams’s characters struggle with how to negotiate intimacy within relationships and isolation when single, the pitfalls and indignities of dating, dragged down by dissatisfaction. Meanwhile the dilemmas of contemporary adulthood play out, including abortion, depression, extra-marital affairs, infatuation, new baby anxiety, bereavement, hair loss, sexual ethics, cats and taxidermy.

Reviews of Treats

'What a wonderful collection. Very smart and VERY funny. A stunning mix of measured wisdom and raw emotion. There's also a real sense that these stories – beautiful in their own right – belong together. I loved the connections between them, and the way ideas were subtly and steadily developed from beginning to end.' Emma Jane Unsworth, author of Animals