Happy Birthday and All That

'Smith's wry, bitter-sweet comedy of disappointed life is hugely appealing' Marie Claire 'A cruelly funny novel about self-delusion. Sharp, witty and clever' Sunday Mirror 'Rebecca Smith has a quirky, off-beat view of life ... she has plenty of good-humoured comedy up her sleeve, a grasp of dialogue and an eagle eye for the absurd' Daily Mail 'She's wise, sharp, funny and touching in her observation of domesticity versus dreams - and has that rare gift of kindness even as she wields the scalpel on feckless husbands and blinkered young wives. A class act' Mavis Cheek

Posy has always dreamt of being the heroine of a Francoise Sagan novel. But life seems to have her passed by and now here she is, a stressed-out mother of four. Although she's married to a man called Parouselli who comes from a long line of trapeze artists and they live in a large, romantic house, it's not quite as magical as it sounds. Frank's dream of being a musician is a reality of distributing BettaKleen catalogues, the house is falling to bits and there are slugs living under the bath. Posy wonders how everyone else manages. Struggling through the mess of family life, she dreams of being a member of The Thin Legs Club, with an immaculate house, children who don't get ill, and a human Renault Espace of a husband. If only!