The Wine-Dark Sea

Paperback / softback

Main Details

Title The Wine-Dark Sea
Authors and Contributors      By (author) Leonardo Sciascia
Translated by Avril Bardoni
Physical Properties
Format:Paperback / softback
Pages:272
Dimensions(mm): Height 198,Width 130
Category/GenreCrime and mystery
ISBN/Barcode 9781847089281
ClassificationsDewey:853.914
Audience
General

Publishing Details

Publisher Granta Books
Imprint Granta Books
Publication Date 2 January 2014
Publication Country United Kingdom

Description

Here are some of Sciascia's greatest stories - brief and haunting, the realist tradition at its best. In one tale a couple of men talk, cynically yet earnestly, about the etymology of the word 'mafia' - who they are, and why their interest is so piqued by the word, become apparent with frightening clarity. In another story a group of peasants are taken on board ship and promised that they will be put ashore illegally at Trenton, New Jersey; after a long time at sea, their landfall is far from what they expected. And Mussolini himself takes an interest in the case of Aleister Crowley, whose presence in Sicily has become an embarrassment.

Author Biography

Leonardo Scaiscia was born in Sicily in 1912 and died there in 1989. Like Joseph Roth, Sciascia worked with deceptively simple forms - books about crime, historical novels, political thrillers - and was a master of lucid and accessible prose. This polished surface conceals great depths of sophistication and an intense engagement with the moral and historical problems of modern Italy, especially of his native Sicily. His books are rooted in a particular culture; they speak to anyone who has ever wondered how people can endure unbearable injustice.

Reviews

Few writers managed to capture the taciturn Sicilian character better than Sciascia, who always understood the power of implication in his work. [A] superb collection * The Times * Brief, haunting and unforgettable * Sunday Tribune * A well-written and instructive collection * Time Out * There are 13 stories in The Wine-Dark Sea... I guarantee you will wish there were more * Big Issue in the North *