Mr Palomar is a delightful eccentric whose chief activity is looking at things. He is seeking knowledge; ''it is only after you have come to know the surface of things that you can venture to seek what is underneath''. Whether contemplating a fine cheese, a hungry gecko, a woman sunbathing topless or a flight of migrant starlings, Mr Palomar''s observations render the world afresh.

''Beautifully nimble, solitary feats of imagination'' Seamus Heaney

''Beguiling'' Time