FROM THE AUTHOR SHORTLISTED FOR THE BOOKER PRIZE (1996) AND THE WHITBREAD PRIZE (2003)

''The Mackay vision . . . as rich in history and wonder as a plain Victorian terrace house'' GUARDIAN

''Her style has a lyric elegance that has deceived critics into describing her, with that most dismissive term of faint praise, as ''gentle'' DAILY TELEGRAPH

''The bizarre and the banal, the half-remembered and the yet-to-come'' INDEPENDENT

Shena Mackay is one of the very best short-story writers in the world. The Atmospheric Railway contains not only thirteen brilliant new stories, but a selection of twenty-three more from her previous collections, making it a delight for her existing admirers and the perfect introduction to her work for newcomers.