'As a woman I have no country. As a woman my country is the whole world.' - Virginia Woolf Asham House in Sussex was once home to Virginia and Leonard Woolf and is the inspiration behind the Asham Award. Launched in 1996 to support and encourage new writers, it is Britain's only prize for short stories by women. Waving at the Gardener presents the twelve fresh, engaging and original voices shortlisted for the Asham Short-Story Award 2009, as well as six specially commissioned new stories by beloved authors Margaret Atwood, Esther Freud, Alison MacLeod and Yiyun Li.