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"A man went to knock at the king's door and said, Give me a boat. The king's house had many other doors, but this was the door for petitions. Since the king spent all his time sitting at the door for favors (favors being offered to the king, you understand), whenever he heard someone knocking at the door for petitions, he would pretend not to hear..."
Why the petitioner required a boat, where he was bound for, and who volunteered to crew for him the reader will discover as this narrative unfolds. And at the end it will be clear that if we thought we were wrong. We have been reading a love story, a philosophical tale worthy of Voltaire or Swift.

"This richly enigmatic short story...is a mischievous and thoughtful satire on ruling elites and bold dreamers....[Saramago] may be the world's greatest living novelist."

Kirkus, 09/01/1999

"[A] pared-down fable, enhanced by Peter Sis's delicate drawings....A poetic allegorist at heart, Saramago spills...simple wants and fears onto a broad philosophic plain...."

New Yorker, 11/15/1999

The Tale of the Unknown Island: Search Results