Cirrus@Austlit

'A major publishing event, Ox-Tales is a remarkable collaboration between Profile Books, the Hay Festival, Oxfam and 30 of the leading fiction writers based in Britain and Ireland.

'The project launches with a set of four stunningly produced books, each containing eight original stories. Each book is themed on one of the elements - Earth, Fire, Air and Water - and features work from a dream cast of authors. The big idea is to raise money for Oxfam and along the way to highlight the charity's work in project areas: agriculture in Earth, water projects in Water, conflict aid in Fire, and climate change in Air.

'The four books will play a central role in the first ever Oxfam Book Fortnight, a new annual event launching in July 2009. The fortnight will be co-ordinated by Hay and bring together dozens of UK literary festivals, who are each being asked to put on one Oxfam event during the fortnight.' (From the publisher's website.)