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Description for The Innocent
Paperback. It is 1948 and Aleksandr, a major in the MGB (the forerunner of the KGB) is sent to an isolated psychiatric clinic to investigate one of the patients there. The patient is a man long presumed dead - a now severely incapacitated veteran of the Second World War, who seems unable to remember any of his past. Num Pages: 192 pages. BIC Classification: FA. Category: (G) General (US: Trade). Dimension: 197 x 130 x 12. Weight in Grams: 138. Good clean copy with some minor shelf wear
It is 1948 and Aleksandr, a major in the MGB (the forerunner of the KGB) is sent to an isolated psychiatric clinic to investigate one of the patients there. The patient is a man long presumed dead - a now severely incapacitated veteran of the Second World War, who seems unable to remember any of his past. Twenty-four years later, Aleksandr is haunted by the case. With his Stalinist faith under threat as the Cold War recedes, he interrogates his memories and the effect the case had on himself and on those he loved most.
It is 1948 and Aleksandr, a major in the MGB (the forerunner of the KGB) is sent to an isolated psychiatric clinic to investigate one of the patients there. The patient is a man long presumed dead - a now severely incapacitated veteran of the Second World War, who seems unable to remember any of his past. Twenty-four years later, Aleksandr is haunted by the case. With his Stalinist faith under threat as the Cold War recedes, he interrogates his memories and the effect the case had on himself and on those he loved most.
Product Details
Condition
Used, Very Good
Publisher
Vintage
Format
Paperback
Publication date
2010
Number of Pages
192
Place of Publication
London, United Kingdom
ISBN
9780099515883
SKU
KCG0003958
Shipping Time
Usually ships in 2 to 4 working days
Ref
99-1
About David Szalay
David Szalay is the author of five previous works of fiction: Spring, The Innocent, London and the South-East, for which he was awarded the Betty Trask and Geoffrey Faber Memorial prizes, All That Man Is, for which he was awarded the Gordon Burn prize and Plimpton Prize for Fiction, and shortlisted for the Man Booker Prize, and Turbulence, which won the Edge Hill Prize. Born in Canada, he grew up in London, and now lives in Vienna. His work has been translated into over twenty languages.
Reviews for The Innocent
A psychologically intricate, flawlessly researched tale of Stalin's legacy through the eyes of a disillusioned old communist. It felt as English as Le Carre with its elegant Cold War scene-setting and quiet but intense emotional range.
Melissa Katsoulis
Times
This is a double headed story that is both sad and compelling
Nina Caplan
Timeout
Szalay weaves a multilayered narrative ripe with period detail... A challenging thriller... Gripping
Metro
Impressive... Still in his mid-thirties, Szalay will surely soon be adding more prizes to his Betty Trask
The Sunday Times
Szalay moves skilfully across time and shows that history's end is not prophesied in books, but written in the wind
Steven Martin
The Big Issue
David Szalay... has created an extraordinary character, a KGB man you can imagine knowing or even being
Observer
This is an exciting and memorable read. Expertly researched, it feels authentic, but wears its learning reassuringly lightly. Anyone who appreciated Martin Amis's Koba the Dread and Orlando Figes's The Whisperers will love it
Viv Groskop
Observer
Very atmospheric
Ann Northfield
Historical Novels Review
Melissa Katsoulis
Times
This is a double headed story that is both sad and compelling
Nina Caplan
Timeout
Szalay weaves a multilayered narrative ripe with period detail... A challenging thriller... Gripping
Metro
Impressive... Still in his mid-thirties, Szalay will surely soon be adding more prizes to his Betty Trask
The Sunday Times
Szalay moves skilfully across time and shows that history's end is not prophesied in books, but written in the wind
Steven Martin
The Big Issue
David Szalay... has created an extraordinary character, a KGB man you can imagine knowing or even being
Observer
This is an exciting and memorable read. Expertly researched, it feels authentic, but wears its learning reassuringly lightly. Anyone who appreciated Martin Amis's Koba the Dread and Orlando Figes's The Whisperers will love it
Viv Groskop
Observer
Very atmospheric
Ann Northfield
Historical Novels Review