The Girls Of Slender MeansOne of Muriel Spark's best loved and greatest novels, now an Essential. London, 1945. The war is grinding to a halt, and the city begins to embrace the hordes who gather to hear the political speeches of the day. And in the tightly knit world of a Kensington hostel, a bevy of well bred girls of slender means and intriguing morals are leading lives of ritual femininity, plotting amongst themselves for the suitors who call to confer favours of clothing