Antal Szerb: VII. Olivér (Oliver VII)

The latest addition to my website is Antal Szerb‘s VII. Olivér (Oliver VII). This is a light-hearted novel, set in the fictitious Southern European country of Alturia. The country is broke and is considering an offer from Coltor, a rich businessman from neighbouring Norlandia. He will take over the two main Alturian industries, sardine fishing … Read more

Victor Pelevin: Священная книга оборотня (The Sacred Book of the Werewolf)

The latest addition to my website is Victor Pelevin‘s Священная книга оборотня (The Sacred Book of the Werewolf). This is another of his books where the main characters of the book are in fact animals, albeit in human form. A Hu-Li, the main character, is a prostitute working in present-day Moscow but she is also … Read more

The best-selling novel of all time

What is the best-selling novel of all time? According to this article in the TLS, till recently, Wikipedia said it was A Tale of Two Cities. As the article states, this was added to Wikipedia, removed, add, removed… It now seems to have been removed and Wikipedia offers us Lord of the Rings, with the … Read more

Azza Filali: Outann [Outann]

The latest addition to my website is Azza Filali‘s Outann [Outann]. This is a Tunisian novel set shortly before the Tunisian Revolution and showing a country ripe for change. Virtually all the characters in the book are miserable. Many of them are engaged in dubious, usually criminal activities. Many of them are divorced or heading … Read more