Oranges Are Not the Only Fruit

Jeanette Winterson's explosive first novel, a gripping coming-of-age story, a queer romance, a modern classic. ‘I love her. ’‘Then you do not love the Lord. ’‘Yes, I love both of them. ’‘You cannot. ’'I do. ''This is the story of Jeanette, born to be one of God's elect: adopted by a fanatical Pentecostal family and ablaze with her own zeal for the scriptures, she seems perfectly suited for the life of a missionary. But then she converts Melanie, and realises she loves this woman almost as much as she loves the Lord. How on Earth could her Church called that passion Unnatural?Both a groundbreaking coming-of-age novel and a pioneering work of autofiction, Oranges Are Not the Only Fruit goes beyond facts into the deepest truths. Searing and tender, playful and provocative, it is a portrait of the artist as a young evangelist, re-writing her own Bible. 'Witty. . extraordinary and exhilarating' The Times'She is a master of her material, a writer in whom great talent abides' Vanity Fair'Many consider her to be the best living writer in this language. . In her hands, words are fluid, radiant, humming' Evening Standard'A novel that deserves revisiting' Observer'A wonderful rites-of-passage novel' Mariella Frostrup