2018 Book prize short list

Lovers and Strangers: An Immigrant History of Post-War Britain

Clair Wills

Published by: Allen Lane

“The depth to which Wills has researched and animated the lives of Britain’s immigrant communities following the Second World War is astonishing, taking us far beyond the headlines and into the ports, dance-halls and workplaces through which they passed.” – Alex Clark

Clair Wills’ book brings to life the incredible diversity and strangeness of the migrant experience. She introduces us to lovers, scroungers, dancers, homeowners, teachers, drinkers, carers and many more to show the opportunities and excitement as much as the humiliation and poverty that could be part of the new arrivals’ experience.