May Malone is said to have a monster in her house, but what Norman finds there may just be the angel he needs. Joe Quinn’s house is noisy with poltergeists, or could it be Davie’s raging causing the disturbance? Fragile Annie learns the truth about herself in a photograph taken by a traveling man near the sea. Set in the northern English Tyneside country of the author’s childhood, these eight short stories by the incomparable David Almond evoke gritty realities and ineffable longings, experiences both ordinary and magical. In autobiographical preludes to each story, the writer shows how all things can be turned into tales, reflecting on a time of wonder, tenderness and joy.

A gentle visionary coming of age in the shadow of the shipyards of northern England, Dominic Hall is torn between extremes. On the one hand, he craves the freedom he feels when he steals away with the eccentric girl artist next door, Holly Stroud --- his first and abiding love --- to balance above the earth on a makeshift tightrope. With Holly, Dom dreams of a life different in every way from his shipbuilder dad’s. On the other hand, he finds himself irresistibly drawn to the brutal charms of Vincent McAlinden, a complex bully who awakens something wild and reckless and killing in Dom.

Mina loves the night. This is when she feels anything is possible and her imagination is set free. One night, she decides to use the blank notebook that’s been lying on the table forever. As she writes, Mina makes discoveries both trivial and profound about herself and her world, her thoughts and her dreams. 

Ten-year-old Michael's baby sister is ill, his parents are frantic, and Doctor Death has come to call. Michael feels helpless. Then he discovers a human being --- or a strange kind of beast --- in the garage. Together Michael and his new friend Mina carry the creature out into the light, and Michael's world changes forever.