Synopses & Reviews
Set in postwar Malaya at the time when people and governments alike are bemused and dazzled by the turmoil of independence, this three-part novel is rich in hilarious comedy and razor-sharp in observation. The protagonist of the work is Victor Crabbe, a teacher in a multiracial school in a squalid village, who moves upward in position as he and his wife maintain a steady decadent progress backward.
Review
"[R]eminiscent of an older master of black humor, Evelyn Waugh." New York Review of Books
Review
"Set in the Malay States during the twilight of colonial rule, the book becomes something more and something rare an international novel that is a true novel...one of the most revealing narratives about the East and the West since A Passage to India." New York Times Book Review
Synopsis
A sweetly satiric look at the twilight days of colonialism.
About the Author
Anthony Burgess is the author of many works, including The Wanting Seed, Nothing Like the Sun, The Doctor Is Sick, The Long Day Wanes, Honey for the Bears, and ReJoyce. He died in 1993.