Canaan's Tongue by John Wray

Canaan's Tongue by John Wray

From the acclaimed and prizewinning author of The Right Hand of Sleep ("Brilliant . . . A truly arresting work"-The New York Times Book Review),an explosive allegorical novel set on the eve of the Civil War, about a gang of men hunted by both the Union and the Confederacy for dealing in stolen slaves. Geburah Plantation, 1863: in a crumbling estate on the banks of the Mississippi, eight survivors of the notorious Island 37 Gang wait for the war, or the Pinkerton Detective Agency, to claim them. Their leader, a bizarre charismatic known only as "the Redeemer," has already been brought to justice, and each day brings the battling armies closer. The hatred these men feel for one another is surpassed only by their fear of their many pursuers. Into this hell comes a mysterious force, an "avenging angel" that compels them, one by one, to a reckoning of their many sins. Canaan's Tongue isrooted in the criminal world of John Murrell, as infamous in his day as Jesse James or Al Capone. It tells the story of his reluctant protégé, Virgil Ball, who derives riches, sexual privilege, and power from the commerce in stolen slaves, known only as "the Trade"-and discovers, when he finally decides to free himself from the Redeemer's yoke, that the force he is challenging is far more formidable than he imagined. It is as old as the river, as vast as the country itself, and it is with us to this day.

"Ambitious and disturbing" -- Margaret Walters * Sunday Times *
"Brilliant..The novel speaks to our time, of course, as all good historical novels do, and offers an interesting perspective on the legacy of slavery in particular" * Guardian *
"Fast-paced and vivid" -- Paul Watkins * Times *
"Exquisite, rich in startling imagery and gallows poetry" * TLS *
"There are elements of Poe and Faulkner here and, of course, Twain - a peculiarly American Gothic mix... important, innovative and compelling" * Sunday Herald *

John Wray was born in Washington, D.C., and has since lived in Texas, Alaska, Chile, and New York. His first novel, The Right Hand of Sleep, was highly acclaimed in both the UK and US, where it was a New York Times Notable Book and a Los Angeles Times's Best Book of the Year. Wray is the recipient of a Whiting Writers' Award. He currently lives in Brooklyn, New York.

SKU	Nicht verfügbar
ISBN 13	9780701175078
ISBN 10	0701175079
Titel	Canaan's Tongue
Autor	John Wray
Buchzustand	Nicht verfügbar
Bindungsart	Hardback
Verlag	Vintage Publishing
Erscheinungsjahr	2006-01-05
Seitenanzahl	352
Hinweis auf dem Einband	Die Abbildung des Buches dient nur Illustrationszwecken, die tatsächliche Bindung, das Cover und die Auflage können sich davon unterscheiden.