Toby's Room is English novelist Pat Barker's follow up novel to Life Class (2007). It continues to follow the fortunes of a group of students and teachers of the Slade School of Fine Art during the First World War. Plot summary The novel falls into two distinct parts covering two time periods – 1912 and 1917 1912 Elinor Brooke, student at Slade, is home for the weekend from her studies in London, along with her older siblings Rachel and Toby. She and Toby go walking out to the old Mill, something that they did, although forbidden, as children. While exploring the Mill, Toby and Elinor fall into a playful embrace, which becomes, at least on Toby's part, a passionate kiss, which he immediately regrets. Although disgusted by his behavior, Elinor agrees to pretend that nothing has happened to the rest of the family. Nevertheless, she is distressed by what has happened, and goes to Toby's room that night to confront him. He wakes and pulls her into bed with him. The next day Elinor's mother, while alone with her, tells her that Toby had a papyrus twin, a girl that died in the womb early, and whose corpse was slowly crushed by Toby's growing body. Elinor returns to London, still disgusted with Toby and herself. She is distracted in her studies, which is noted by Tonks, her intimidating teacher at Slade. She begins an anatomy class at the teaching hospital to improve her skills. She is not repelled by this, but the situation is still awkward as Toby, a medical student, was going to tutor her in anatomy, but now a distance has grown between them. This rift is solved by Toby's becoming very ill and ignoring his health while studying for his finals. Elinor nurses him, they both keep the incident from their family, and they mend their relationship somewhat. 1917 In the midst of the First World War, Elinor has returned to the family home. She has the feeling that Toby, a medical officer at the front in France, will not return home. Several weeks later they find out he is "Missing, believed killed." In denial about the War itself, and without a body located, Elinor cannot believe that the story she has been told is what actually happened. Finding out that another former Slade student, Kit Neville, served under her brother, she writes to him to find