Called 'the book lost and found in time' by its author, Skylight is one of Jose Saramago's earliest works but remained unpublished during his lifetime. The manuscript lay hidden in storage for decades - and it took almost sixty years for the book to finally come to light. A gritty, involving portrait of working lives, Skylight is set in an old apartment block in late-1940s Lisbon. Each of the building's households has its own characters, and each of those characters has their own stories - all are brought to life with compassion and skill. The novel introduces us to the young Saramago, so very different from what readers have come to expect from him, but already deeply concerned with the lives of ordinary people, with their joy and their grief. All the hallmarks of his acclaimed later work are here - humour, psychological insight, wonderfully natural dialogue and, above all, a belief in the transforming power of love.