"synopsis" may belong to another edition of this title.
'Original and astonishing ... Brilliant persuasive and circumstantial in its imagination, so that each step towards barbarism seems completely necessary.' New Statesman
'For some years and books now [we] have been reading Doris Lessing to find out what's going on - what is happening to our society's nervous system and how it affects the way we live with each other ... She is one of those acute emotional intelligences whose stories provide keys to our personal dilemmas.’ Guardian
‘An extraordinary and compelling meditation about the enduring need for loyalty, love and responsibility in an unprecedented time.’ Time
Many years into the future, city life has broken down, communications have failed and food supplies are dwindling. From her window, a middle-aged woman – our narrator – watches things fall apart: hordes of people migrating to the countryside, gangs of children roaming the streets.
One morning, a young girl, Emily, is brought to the house by a stranger and left in her care. A strange precocious adolescent, unafraid of the harsh world outside, she is slowly drawn into the tribal streetlife and its barbaric rituals. Meanwhile, the narrator watches and waits, and as civilisation crumbles, retreats into her hidden world, where reality fades and the past is revisited...
‘Brilliant, persuasive and circumstantial in its imagination, so that each step towards barbarism seems completely necessary. From a reality of food shortages and adolescent gangs to the final image of all but a few cave-dwellers flavouring rabbit stews with the weeds sprouted from cracked pavements, the novel carries you forward with such total conviction that it comes as a shock to step outdoors and find the traffic merely at a standstill, the buses only running late, as usual.’
NEW STATESMAN
‘An extraordinary and compelling meditation about the enduring need for loyalty, love and responsibility in an unprecedented time.’
TIME
‘Quite possibly you’re one of those people who for some years and books now have been reading Doris Lessing to find out what’s going on – what is happening to our society’s nervous system and how it affects the way we live with each other... She is one of those acute emotional intelligences whose stories provide keys to our personal dilemmas.’
W.L. WEBB, 'Guardian'
"About this title" may belong to another edition of this title.
Book Description PAP. Condition: New. New Book. Shipped from UK. Established seller since 2000. Seller Inventory # GO-9780006493259
Book Description Paperback. Condition: new. Paperback. A compelling vision of a disorietating and barbaric future from Doris Lessing, winner of the Nobel Prize for Literature. Many years in the future, city life has broken down, communications have failed and food supplies are dwindling. From her window a middle-aged woman our narrator watches things fall apart and records what she witnesses: hordes of people migrating to the countryside, gangs of children roaming the streets. One day, a young girl, Emily, is brought to her house by a stranger and left in her care. A strange, precocious adolescent, drawn to the tribal streetlife and its barbaric rituals, she is unafraid of the harsh world outside, while our narrator retreats into her hidden world where reality fades and the past is revisited A compelling vision of a disorietating and barbaric future from Doris Lessing, winner of the Nobel Prize for Literature. Shipping may be from multiple locations in the US or from the UK, depending on stock availability. Seller Inventory # 9780006493259
Book Description Soft Cover. Condition: new. Seller Inventory # 9780006493259
Book Description paperback. Condition: New. Language: ENG. Seller Inventory # 9780006493259
Book Description Paperback / softback. Condition: New. New copy - Usually dispatched within 4 working days. A compelling vision of a disorietating and barbaric future from Doris Lessing, winner of the Nobel Prize for Literature. Seller Inventory # B9780006493259
Book Description Paperback. Condition: Brand New. 192 pages. 7.64x5.12x0.55 inches. In Stock. Seller Inventory # __0006493254
Book Description Paperback. Condition: Brand New. 192 pages. 7.64x5.12x0.55 inches. This item is printed on demand. Seller Inventory # zk0006493254
Book Description Condition: New. Seller Inventory # 1369354-n
Book Description PAP. Condition: New. New Book. Shipped from UK. Established seller since 2000. Seller Inventory # GO-9780006493259
Book Description Taschenbuch. Condition: Neu. Neuware - Das Leben in der Stadt ist zusammengebrochen. Die staatliche Verwaltung arbeitet nicht mehr, eine geregelte Lebensmittelversorgung findet nicht mehr statt, das Verkehrswesen und sämtliche Kommunikationssysteme funktionieren nicht mehr. Die Menschen sind ständig unterwegs, unablässig mit der Organisation des Lebens beschäftigt und auf der Suche nach Überlebensmöglichkeiten. Es greifen Anarchie und Mangel um sich. Jugendliche und Erwachsene besetzen leerstehende Häuser, plündern Geschäfte, und Horden von streunenden Kindern machen die Straßen unsicher. Das Chaos der Straße beobachtet eine ältere alleinstehende Frau vom Fenster ihrer Wohnung aus. Sie nimmt ein etwa zwölfjähriges Mädchen auf, dem von nun an ihr Denken und Tun gilt. Neben dieser Realität existiert eine traumartige, surreale Wirklichkeit mit gefährlichen und visionären Dimensionen. Auch das Ende des Romans scheint visionär: Das zur jungen Frau herangewachsene Mädchen bricht mit Gerald, dem jugendlichen Anführer einer der Kinderbanden, auf zu einer vielleicht besseren Wirklichkeit. 192 pp. Deutsch. Seller Inventory # 9780006493259