224pp. A pretty girl arrives in the small village of Battenbun at the same time as a large eel is spotted in the river. Soon the woods are full of men out to catch both the eel and the girl.She arrived one morning in a decrepit old car. She hadn't come from anywhere, she wasn't going anywhere, so she stayed. The village hadn't seen anything like her before, and wasn't certain whether it wanted to. The men couldn't stop talking about her.