Her partner has walked out on her. She's moved into a tiny flat on the outskirts of Dublin. She has no job. But she does have her beloved baby daughter - and there's a little playground across the street.

It's a tired spot for teenagers and tramps, but Eve is determined to make this new life work. Alongside her interfering lodger and a group of local mums she swings into action to make the playground the heart of the community.

But not all games are innocent - and not all friends are true. When a terrible accident is blamed on her, Eve must forge her own independence - and realise that the playground is not a place to hide from adulthood.

Dazzling ... It's a funny, sometimes heartbreaking insight into how a young mother struggles to cope ... Absolutely captivating', Irish Independent

Julia Kelly is surely the freshest voice in Irish fiction since the wonderful early novels of Edna O'Brien. This is a future to watch. John Banville

Searingly honest, uncomfortably so ... Anatomises the aftermath of a breakup and the ensuing struggles with scalpel-like prose ... emotional resonance and achingly human observations, Sunday Independent

A first-rate portrait ... Very funny (squirm-inducing early Mike Leigh - Abigail's Party, say - comes to mind) ... The anarchy of the everyday is what the novel conveys so well, so unhurriedly, so unostentatiously, with much sly wit ... Excellent, Irish Times