Tales of Innocence and Experience

* A delightful exploration of the special relationship between grandmothers and their granddaughters by the author of key feminist text of the 1970s, PATRIARCHAL ATTITUDES, and mother of writer Kate Figes and historian Orlando Figes 'A remarkable little book ... subtle and sophisticated ... it explores that most significant of all relationships-the one between the very young and the old-by way of myth and story, and has done so with resounding success ... read it' Daily Mail 'A mesmerising account of becoming a grandmother-a picture of warmth and love ... though heart-rending at times, her message is one of hope-that we must treasure our own and our children's innocence' Good Housekeeping

Explores the relationship between a grandmother and her granddaughter. This work shows how a young girl enables her grandmother to rediscover joy and innocence and come to terms with a past of Nazi persecution. It also explores the darker side of childhood.This is a captivating exploration of the relationship between a grandmother and her granddaughter. Alive to the special sweetness of the relationship, Figes also explores the darker side of childhood. How in fairy tales such as "Snow White", "Little Red Riding Hood" and "Hansel and Gretel" difficult emotions like jealousy and anger, fear of death and abandonment are evoked and transformed by the storyteller's art. It is at this point that the author evokes the fairy tale of her own privileged Berlin childhood which was brutally shattered when her family escaped from the Nazis to England, leaving behind the much loved grandparents, who perished in a Polish camp. But a new child around allows the grandmother the chance we all seek to sneak back into the garden of innocence.