Fourteen stories through which can be traced D. H. Lawrence's development in his twenties. Among these stories: A Prelude, his first published work, was written for a newspaper competition.

The Old Adam and Witch à la Mode reflect the years of intense sexual frustration Lawrence endured while a schoolmaster in Croydon.

A Chapel and A Hay Hut Among the Mountains records a happier period - the first months of his life with Frieda.

The Thimble and The Mortal Coil ('a first-class story, one of my purest creations') take us to the years of the First World War, years of Lawrence's maturity and growing sense of tragedy.