These five rich, witty and magical stories from the author of Out of Africa include one of her most well-known tales, 'Babette's Feast' , which was made into the classic film. It tells the story of a French cook working in a puritanical Norwegian community, who treats her employers to the decadent feast of a lifetime. There is also a real-life Prospero and his Ariel in ' Tempests ', a mysterious pearl-fisher in 'The Diver' and a brief, tragic encounter in 'The Ring' . All the stories have a mystic, fairy-tale quality, linked by themes of angels, the sea, dreams and fate. They were among the last to be written by Isak Dinesen, and show her as a master of short fiction.
'Immensely satisfying . . . splendid imaginative creations, the work of a writer of stature.' The Times Literary Supplement
'Acutely perceptive, often mysterious stories.' Sunday Telegraph