Sandra Williams

Time and Tide Sandra Williams

Time and Tide: a collection of tales, speaks of change-sometimes a long time coming, sometimes in an instant, but always inevitable. The first story, "Book of Hours," creates the frame for the rest of the tales. Helen, an American writer living in Italy, believes her creativity is gone forever as she returns to her childhood home to care for her dying mother. A curious encounter in a clock shop leads her to an experience of inspiration for the tales "like a swift, incoming tide: surreal, filled with beings of beauty and sadness, old regrets and new life-all muddled and intertwined as in a dream." Each subsequent story, with Helen as conduit, reminds us of the strange alchemy of human experience which can sometimes bring forth golden revelations.