1979. Three old Cambridge friends are brought together at a party to celebrate New Year's Eve, and the end of a decade. A portentous moment. A moment to reflect on what had seemed to be - and a moment to prophesy. Esther, Liz and Alix first met in Cambridge in the early fifties, a time when their futures held glittering promise. But with the dawn of the Thatcher era, everything changed. Now middle-aged, how will these confident women cope with the personal and professional challenges they will come to face? THE RADIANT WAY is a biting exploration of the changing values of modern Britain and a sensitive portrayal of human relationships, seen through the kaleidoscopic gaze of these three women. 'An important book - entertaining, sad, witty, lively' Evening Standard 'THE RADIANT WAY is truly radical' Marilynne Robinson, New York Times

Author Biography

Dame Margaret Drabble was born in Sheffield in 1939 and was educated at Newnham College, Cambridge. She is the author of nineteen novels including A Summer Bird-Cage, The Millstone, The Peppered Moth, The Red Queen, The Sea Lady, The Pure Gold Baby and The Dark Flood Rises. She has also written biographies and screenplays, and was the editor of the Oxford Companion to English Literature. She was appointed CBE in 1980, and made DBE in the 2008 Honours list. She was also awarded the 2011 Golden PEN Award for a Lifetime's Distinguished Service to Literature. She is married to the biographer Michael Holroyd.