The Laying on of Hands: Stories

Alan Bennett's extraordinary ear for dialogue and sharpness of perception have made him a master storyteller. In "Father! Father! Burning Bright" he writes with tragicomic insight about a son's vigil at his father's deathbed where their lifelong battle continues to the end. "The Laying on of Hands," a brilliantly funny satire, describes a society memorial service for a rather special masseur who died tragically young; and in "Miss Fozzard Finds her Feet," a lonely, unmarried department store clerk discovers there's more to life than looking after her brother through her only indulgence, her podiatrist.

Alan Bennett is a renowned playwright and essayist, whose screenplay for The Madness of King George was nominated for an Academy Award. He is also the author of The Clothes They Stood Up In and Writing Home. He lives in London, England.