The Daffodil Days
Helen Bain
Mar 2026 · Bloomsbury GB Audio · Narrated by Finty Williams
headphones
Audiobook
9 hr 49 min
Unabridged
family_home
Eligible
info
Want a free 16 min sample? Listen anytime, even offline.
Add
About this audiobook
Bloomsbury presents The Daffodil Days by Helen Bain, read by Finty Williams
'Beautiful, affecting and deeply impressive' Louise Kennedy, author of Trespasses
In the early 1960s, in a small town near Dartmoor, the church bells ring. The people of North Tawton go about their days, catching glimpses of one another’s lives.
There’s the local GP, who knows more about his patients than he would sometimes prefer. There’s the young shop assistant at Kestrels, who understands that the ladies who come there for a new outfit sometimes hope to find a new self. There’s the tenant farm labourer who rings the tower bells at the church three times a week, the notes – harmonious and clashing – rippling out across the rooftops of the town.
Amid all these lives, a young couple move into focus. New to the town with their small daughter, they have escaped London for a quieter existence in the thatched house beside the church, Court Green. The life they intend to build here – out of fresh lino tiles, second-hand furniture painted with hearts and flowers, and expertly-cooked suppers for weekend guests – will be a good and happy one.
The Daffodil Days depicts a pivotal year in the marriage of 20th-century literature’s most infamous couple, witnessed by the people they lived among. It is a kaleidoscopic portrait of this enigmatic pair, refracted through the rich inner lives of a rural community caught – if only for a moment – in their light.
'Beautiful, affecting and deeply impressive' Louise Kennedy, author of Trespasses
In the early 1960s, in a small town near Dartmoor, the church bells ring. The people of North Tawton go about their days, catching glimpses of one another’s lives.
There’s the local GP, who knows more about his patients than he would sometimes prefer. There’s the young shop assistant at Kestrels, who understands that the ladies who come there for a new outfit sometimes hope to find a new self. There’s the tenant farm labourer who rings the tower bells at the church three times a week, the notes – harmonious and clashing – rippling out across the rooftops of the town.
Amid all these lives, a young couple move into focus. New to the town with their small daughter, they have escaped London for a quieter existence in the thatched house beside the church, Court Green. The life they intend to build here – out of fresh lino tiles, second-hand furniture painted with hearts and flowers, and expertly-cooked suppers for weekend guests – will be a good and happy one.
The Daffodil Days depicts a pivotal year in the marriage of 20th-century literature’s most infamous couple, witnessed by the people they lived among. It is a kaleidoscopic portrait of this enigmatic pair, refracted through the rich inner lives of a rural community caught – if only for a moment – in their light.
Bloomsbury presents The Daffodil Days by Helen Bain, read by Finty Williams
'Beautiful, affecting and deeply impressive' Louise Kennedy, author of Trespasses
In the early 1960s, in a small town near Dartmoor, the church bells ring. The people of North Tawton go about their days, catching glimps...
Discover more
About the author
Helen Bain received her PhD in creative writing from King’s College London, and holds two MA degrees from Birkbeck University in creative writing and modern/contemporary literature. She was chosen for the London Library Emerging Writers Programme 2020-21 and the Genesis Foundation Emerging Writers Programme 2022-23. She lives in Sussex. The Daffodil Days is her first novel.
Helen Bain received her PhD in creative writing from King’s College London, and holds two MA degrees from Birkbeck University in creative writing and modern/contemporary literature. She was chosen for the London Library Emerging Writers Programme 2020-21 and the Genesis Foundation Emerging Writer...
Rate this audiobook
Tell us what you think.
Listening information
Smartphones and tablets
Install the Google Play Books app for Android and iPad/iPhone. It syncs automatically with your account and allows you to read online or offline wherever you are.
Laptops and computers
You can read books purchased on Google Play using your computer's web browser.
