Synopses & Reviews
In the summer of 1922, after a series of decisive defeats at the hands of the Turks, the Greek army is in retreat from Asia Minor. Thousands of soldiers sweep toward the Mediterranean coast, leaving behind their dead, their dreams of empire . . . and one lost brigade, wandering in the Anatolian desert under a seemingly inexpiable curse. As their leader slips further and further into morphine-dulled despair, with no hope of escape for his troops, morale crumbles among the officers. Communist leaflets appear mysteriously every morning in the camp. A rash of thefts goes unsolved. And each man's thoughts turn, more and more often, to a single unspeakable act committed by the brigade in a moment of desperation.
At first the men's luck seems to change when they stumble on a town-a Greek settlement untouched by the war, where the mayor and the schoolteacher are in fierce competition for the favors of the local courtesan, and a young, failed newspaper correspondent is drinking himself to death for lack of a story. But the brigade hasn't outrun its Furies; instead it brings them to this homely idyll, with fateful consequences for soldiers and citizens alike.
The New York Times Book Review calls Panos Karnezis's writing "spry and playful, sly and macabre," observing that it "brings to mind the young Eudora Welty, especially in the fun it has with Greek legend and myth, [while its] intersection of gritty quotidian detail with flights of fancy recalls Gabriel García Márquez." This first novel confirms Karnezis as one of Britain's most remarkable young authors.
Review
"As with many an imperial expedition, the soldiers seem to be lost without honor; they massacre civilians on their fool's errand undertaken for worthless ends. Karnezis dramatizes their plight with remorseless clarity and dry humor." Wesley Yang, The New York Times Book Review
Review
"[An] intelligent, lyrical first novel....[A] grimly funny, subversive allegory of 20th-century history, in which the punishments for dreaming, loving or believing too fervently are swift and severe." Publishers Weekly
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"A splendidly realized account of fate and circumstance, richly narrated with a good ear for the music of history and character alike." Kirkus Reviews
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"Karnezis' lean style is inspiring, his prognosis dour; he seems to have little hope we'll all find our way out together." Keir Graff, Booklist
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"Karnezis, who launched his career with an excellent short story collection, Little Infamies, certainly knows his mythology. A work to be read and reread, this first novel is highly recommended..." Library Journal
Synopsis
The New York Times Book Review calls Karnezis's writing "spry and playful, sly and macabre," observing that it "brings to mind the young Eudora Welty, especially in the fun it has with Greek legend and myth, [while its] intersection of gritty quotidian detail with flights of fancy recalls Gabriel Garcia Marquez." This first novel confirms Karnezis as one of Britain's most remarkable young authors.
About the Author
Panos Karnezis was born in Greece in 1967. He moved to England in 1992 to study engineering, and was awarded an MA in Creative Writing by the University of East Anglia. His first book,
Little Infamies, was published in 2002. He lives in Oxford.