The story is set in a fictional village in the west country, Babbel’s End. The name gives the game away. We meet the community in a swirl of conflicting voices, its members loudly talking past each other. The lack of understanding differs from its Biblical model in that they all speak English, except one. She of course is the one who brings resolution and restores them all to their senses and their better selves.
The plot is straightforward. A Muslim couple have come to the village to escape traditional family. They settles down happily enough, ignoring the undercurrents of argument and grievance that animate neighbours. Religion is on the back burner, and the gas is switched off. Then Bilal is called back to his sick mother and taxed with her dying wish. Life in Babbel’s End take's a dramatic turn.
Issues of cultural disagreement and divide are contemporary, though here the author avoids the bitter hatred we sometimes find in the real world. The characters are just about credible, though none are truly bad. In the end all can be reformed and made if not good then much better, bringing mutual understanding to Babbel.