‘Utterly human and moving’ —Alison MacLeod, author of Unexploded, longlisted for the Man Booker Prize 2013

Postal worker Jenny’s life is in the doldrums. Her daughter is all grown up and ready to face the world, her marriage is falling apart, and now her best friend and colleague tells her he plans to retire. So, when a postcard from Australia, begging the recipient for forgiveness but marked ‘insufficient address’, lands on her sorting table, she does the unthinkable – she slips it up her sleeve, with the intention of delivering it herself. Jenny sets off on a journey around the Isle of Wight, determined to find the recipient, and with the help of the locals she hopes to reunite the long-lost lovers. Will she be able to give them the happy ending she didn’t allow herself to have?

Set against the backdrop of the strikes in the 1980s, Missing Words is a heart-warming journey about self-discovery, the power of family ties, and the strength needed to face whatever life throws your way.