Sybil Marshall was the third child born into a fenland smallholder's family before the outbreak of the Great War. They lived in a scattered hamlet in the depths of the Huntingdonshire fens, and got their living from the rich black earth, when flood or frost did not prevent them. In such circumstances they expected little, and made the most of what they had. This collection of stories draws on the author's deep family traditions and memories, from the events of the disastrous flood of 1912, to her aunt's intriguing lodger who is exposed as a German spy.