''That Summer'' is the fourth novel by Scottish writer

Andrew Greig Andrew Greig (born 23 September 1951) is a Scottish writer. He was born in Bannockburn, near Stirling, and grew up in Anstruther, Fife. He studied philosophy at the University of Edinburgh and is a former Glasgow University Writing Fellow and S ...

. It was retitled ''The Clouds Above: A Novel of Love and War'' for the U.S. market.

Plot summary

It is June 1940.

Working class The working class (or labouring class) comprises those engaged in manual-labour occupations or industrial work, who are remunerated via waged or salaried contracts. Working-class occupations (see also " Designation of workers by collar colo ...

Len Westbourne, an inexperienced fighter pilot, falls in love with Stella Gardam, a more worldly

radar Radar is a detection system that uses radio waves to determine the distance ('' ranging''), angle, and radial velocity of objects relative to the site. It can be used to detect aircraft, ships, spacecraft, guided missiles, motor vehicles, we ...

operator. Stella's friend Maddy is killed in a bombing raid and Len's squadron colleague, Polish pilot Tad, dies in a flying accident. Told in alternate chapters from the perspectives of Len and Stella, ''That Summer'' is a love story told against the background of the

Battle of Britain The Battle of Britain, also known as the Air Battle for England (german: die Luftschlacht um England), was a military campaign of the Second World War, in which the Royal Air Force (RAF) and the Fleet Air Arm (FAA) of the Royal Navy defende ...

. Len is injured when his

Hawker Hurricane The Hawker Hurricane is a British single-seat fighter aircraft of the 1930s–40s which was designed and predominantly built by Hawker Aircraft Ltd. for service with the Royal Air Force (RAF). It was overshadowed in the public consciousness b ...

crashes and goes off to recuperate with Stella in the countryside.

External links

Bio
2000 British novels Novels by Andrew Greig Scottish novels Fiction set in 1940 Novels set during World War II Faber and Faber books {{2000s-WWII-novel-stub