Maurice and Maralyn

An enthralling, engrossing story of survival and the resilience of the human spirit – BILL BRYSONElectrifying … a tender portrait of two unconventional souls blithely defying the conventions of their era and making a break for freedom – Fiona Sturges * Guardian *Extraordinary … Elmhirst is a terrific writer – ELIZABETH DAYAn extraordinary survival story… Elmhirst’s reconstruction of their ordeal is riveting, told in illuminating detail * Sunday Times *Maurice and Maralyn somehow contrives to be both gripping and elegiac. Sophie Elmhirst’s graceful, confident prose is novelistic in its pleasures and profoundly moving in its impact – KALIANE BRADLEY, author of The Ministry of TimeA compelling book about a shipwreck, but also as thoughtful a tale about marriage, for better and worse, as you are likely to read * Observer *Thought-provoking…compelling…tender… An ideal gift for a friend or family who likes incredible true stories of survival. But it’s also a book about love and hubris. And in that sense, it’s a book for us all. – PANDORA SYKESAn amazing tale of survival … reminds me how incredibly hard it is to find love out there in the world – Tracey Thorn * New Statesman *This dramatic, profound human story is so beautifully told in calm, thoughtful, perfectly judged prose. I really could not put it down – NINA STIBBE, author of Love, NinaA gripping tale of maritime catastrophe but also of marriage – India Knight * Sunday Times *

Sophie Elmhirst is a prizewinning writer for the Guardian Long Read and The Economist’s 1843 magazine, and a contributing editor at the Gentlewoman and Harper’s Bazaar. In 2020 she won the British Press Award for Feature Writer of the Year; she has also won a Foreign Press Award and been longlisted for the Orwell Prize. She first came across the story of Maurice and Maralyn Bailey researching a piece on our desire to escape. This is her first book. She lives in London.