Author:Bruce Chatwin
As Seen on BBC Between the Covers
This is Chatwin's unforgettable novel of a man in war-torn Communist Prague, driven to protect his collection of porcelain figurines at any cost.
Bruce Chatwin's bestselling novel traces the fortunes of the enigmatic and unconventional hero, Kaspar Utz. Despite the restrictions of Cold War Czechoslovakia, Utz asserts his individuality through his devotion to his precious collection of Meissen porcelain. Although Utz is permitted to leave the country each year, and considers defecting each time, he is not allowed to take his porcelain with him and so he always returns to his Czech home, a prisoner both of the Communist state and of his collection.
'Chatwin at his most erudite and evocative' New York Times
'His final tour de force... a pristine miniature' Independent
SHORTLISTED FOR THE BOOKER PRIZE
Not a word is wasted in the telling of this tale. Each sentence is fashioned, polished, and put into place with microscopic care
—— Daily TelegraphThis shiny little novel is not just about pretty porcelain figurines but about dirty great issues of life and creativity
—— The TimesWith Chatwin, the real excitement derives from an intellectual drama, in dialogues about art as a surrogate creation, a robbery of divine power, and art collecting as idolatry...For Chatwin, ideas are the supreme fictions
—— ObserverJames Walvin here addresses the enormity of the slave trade by looking in depth at three individuals inextricably bound up in it
—— London Review of BooksA remarkable and gripping story, asking profound questions
—— IndependentJames Walvin provides engrossing portraits of three individuals at the centre of the slave trade
—— Financial TimesCleary written and well-researched
—— Paul Callan , Daily ExpressA remarkable and gripping story
—— IndependentDeftly crafted... The power of Walvin's stories lies in their details
—— Sunday TimesThe inspiring lives of two unique people, and Tolan's compassion in narrating them, illuminate the tragedy of Palestine in the most moving and revealing way
—— Karma Nabulsi, Prize Research Fellow, Oxford UniversityA hard book to read with dry eyes and without a lump in one's throat. And hard to read, also, without feeling - dare one even say the word? - something approaching hope
—— Adam Hochschild, author of Bury the Chains and King Leopold's GhostAn understated clash of cultures tale, delicately told
—— Radio TimesImpeccably researched... this narrative illustrates the possibility of compassionate imagination
—— TLSBeautifully written
—— Tam Dalyell, MP
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