Beginning in 1974 and ending with the fading of Thatcher's government in 1996, 'The Northern Clemency' is Philip Hensher's epic portrait of an entire era, a novel concerned with the lives of ordinary people and history on the move.Hensher understands people nad he understands politics. He understands the wise, the mean, and the absurd. -- A.S. Byatt, Saturday Guardian, 29.11.08