An Irish Times Best Irish Book of the 21st Century

From Belfast to London and back again, the eleven stories in Lucy Caldwell's acclaimed first collection chronicle the heartache, joy, and tenderness of growing up.

"[Caldwell] holds the reader right up against the tender humanity of her characters." --Eimear McBride, author of The City Changes Its Face and The Lesser Bohemians

With lives caught in the suspense of transition--between city and country; between the crowd and the out; between home and escape; between love and loneliness--Multitudes culminates with the heart-wrenching and unforgettable title story, as a young woman goes through her first labour and the traumatic days that follow.

Deeply affecting, intimate and yet resonant, these are stories that squeeze right into the fractures that end up shaping the course of lives.