Natural Disaster : 'Mrs Dalloway meets Motherland' (The Times) in this hilariously relatable, sharply observed new novel from the author of NOT WORKING by Owens, Lisa
Author: Owens, Lisa Modern & contemporary fiction (post c 1945)Published on 25 June 2026 by Little, Brown Book Group (Virago Press Ltd) in the United Kingdom.Hardback | 208 pages144 x 224 x 21 | 332g 'Like Mrs Dalloway with Calpol . . . very, very funny' THE TIMES'Hilarious, brilliant, utterly exhilarating' MONICA ALI'Sharply observed and deeply relatable comedy' GUARDIAN, 70 brilliant books for the summer'Funny, sad, tender and perfectly observed' IRISH TIMES'Fantastic' JESSIE BURTON'A joy' STYLIST, BOOK OF THE MONTH'An extremely funny book that's both perceptive and propulsive' ADAM KAYFor weeks, she has been saying it will be their special day. One last, perfect day with her children before she returns to work after maternity leave. What's the worst that can happen?Unfolding across 24 hours, Natural Disaster is a novel about the absurd, frustrating, hilarious, precarious, bittersweet, sometimes astonishing challenge - literal, existential - of being a woman, a mother, a wife, a person for one single, entire day.'Funny, moving ... A powerful addition to the literature of surviving procreation' DIANA EVANS, GUARDIAN BOOK OF THE DAY 'Funny and relatable, it captures the overwhelming, absurd and quietly extraordinary reality of motherhood' WOMAN & HOME 'Funny, sharp unputdownable' NINA STIBBE'Hilarious ... brilliantly sharp' RED MAGAZINE'I did not give Lisa Owens permission to look inside my very soul but she seems to have done it anyway. Smart, wise and real' CLAIRE LYNCH'Captures the absurdity, tenderness and frazzle of modern motherhood with acute, painfully recognisable humour' iPaper, Best Books for June'I absolutely loved it' LUCY DIAMOND'Spiky wit and unsentimental pathos ... I laughed out loud' DAILY MAIL'Compulsive, agonising, and hilarious' CHRIS POWER 'The funniest novel I've read in years' CLAIRE POWELL'Brilliant, hilarious, gut-punchingly truth-telling' EMILY ITAMI'Thunderously good' NATHAN FILER'A genuinely dazzling novel' DAVID WHITEHOUSE'This is the book I've been waiting for ever since I had children. So propulsive I read it in a single sitting' MARIANNE LEVY'Destined to become a classic' JESSICA STANLEY'What a perfect depiction of early motherhood, womanhood, and love' OLIVIA POTTS'I absolutely adored it.' EMMA HUGHES'Generous, funny, heartbreaking and clever' LIZZY STEWART
