Digby Walton was once the heir to an English pottery company. Now in old age he contemplates the history of that company as he reflects upon the modern world. He stares with a tragic eye at the society that surrounds him. His own heir is Theo, who wishes to ignore history and immerse himself entirely in his passion for jazz. Alan Wall"s novel weaves back and forth between the present and the twentieth century that formed it, its war and industries; industries that once propelled an empire but now appear in permanent decline, asking constantly what art contributes to life and whether life can ever survive for long without it.