**THESUNDAY TIMESBESTSELLER** Would you rather love the more, and suffer the more; or love the less, and suffer the less? That is, I think, finally, the only real question.

First love has lifelong consequences, but Paul doesnt know anything about that at nineteen. At nineteen, hes proud of the fact his relationship flies in the face of social convention.

As he grows older, the demands placed on Paul by love become far greater than he could possibly have foreseen.

Tender and wise,The Only Storyis a deeply moving novel by one of fictions greatest mappers of the human heart.

Julian Barnesis the author of twelve novels, includingThe Sense of an Ending, which won the 2011 Man Booker Prize for Fiction. He has also written three books of short stories, four collections of essays and two books of non-fiction,Nothing to be Frightened Ofand theSunday Timesnumber one bestsellerLevels of Life. In 2017 he was awarded the Légion d'honneur.