num_pages: 270
description: This is an exploration of divergent lives, those of two sisters, Virginia and Emmy. Virginia has lived all her life with her domineering mother; Emmy emigrated to Australia and set up house there with a rich husband. In middle age, both sisters find themselves facing crises.
language: English
title: When the World Was Steady
titlecomplete: When the World Was Steady
genres: Literary Fiction, Scotland, Novels, Fiction, Contemporary, British Literature
ratings_count: 972
places: London, England, Bali
awards: awardedAt: 820483200000
name: PEN/Faulkner Award for Fiction
publisher: Granta Books