In this funny and poignant novel, a handsome French baker looks like being the secret ingredient to refresh Esme's stale life. But is the recipe for happiness closer to home? 'Esme's bread begged to be eaten. It pleaded. It beseeched. You simply could not be in the same room as her sourdough without licking your lips and instantly realising it was exactly what you felt like eating. No, more than that. It was exactly what you had been missing.' But all is not well in the House in the Clouds. Pog's gorgeous, garrulous, glutinous wife, Esme, is not her usual self. Her attempts at avoiding what's really troubling her are affecting everyone in the family, including her irascible father-in-law Henry and the mad assortment of animals they keep acquiring. What can a desperate, devoted husband do, except wait for the mayhem to abate?