The Maze - Softcover

Panos Karnezis

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0099449951 ISBN 13: 9780099449959

Publisher: Vintage Books, 2005

Synopsis

"Little Infamies" was one of the great successes of 2002: a collection of extraordinary stories that gained rapturous reviews and very strong sales. Now, Panos Karnezis brings us his first novel, "The Maze", a book that will propel him to the very first rank of young writers. Set in Anatolia in 1922, "The Maze" is the story of a retreating Greek brigade that has lost its way. It is pursued by a Turkish army that seeks to avenge three years of Greek occupation. No help is forthcoming. Commanded by a brigadier with a passion for Greek mythology and an addiction to morphia, the brigade's only chance of salvation is to reach the Mediterranean coast and sail home. As the army wanders through the Anatolian desert, their internal divisions become more pronounced and their dementias more florid. Eventually, they reach a small town, up until now untouched by the war, which is run by a simple-minded mayor and is peopled by a gallery of wonderfully strange characters. When the soldiers leave at last, a tragedy has taken place and the town has changed forever.

About this title

From the Back Cover:

"The bastard love child of 'M*A*S*H' and Shakespeare...Supple prose and perfectly tuned dialogue."--Philip Connors, Newsday

In the summer of 1922, the Greek army is in retreat from Asia Minor, leaving behind one lost brigade, wandering in the Anatolian desert under a seemingly inexpiable curse. There is the doomed army commander addicted to morphine; the chaplain who induces the commander to strike a bargain with God; the hooker with a heart of gold whom he wants to redeem; a foreign correspondent who can't file stories; a deserter lost and found, and a prize stallion bolted. A debut novel of ambition and charm, The Maze marks the emergence of a stunning young talent whom The New York Times has called "downright miraculous."

"Karnezis's storytelling talents know no limits...Using dark humor and revealing dialogue, Karnezis, like the best writers, shows not only the flaws of his characters but also other traits that inspire understanding and even compassion for them...Inventive and striking."--Nicholas Gage, The Washington Post

"Economy, well-crafted plots, intense quiddity, and resonance that emerges inevitably from the stuff of the story...The Maze succeeds because it imagines so exactingly the hope, struggle and eventual futility of its characters' lives [and] shows a truly talented writer finding his way into more expansive regions."--Sam Thompson, Times Literary Supplement

"Colorful cast [with] antic incidents and delicate shades of prose."--The New Yorker

"Accomplished...Karnezis dramatizes with remorseless clarity and dry humor."--The New York Times Book Review

Panos Karnezis, author of Little Infamies (Picador, 2004), was born in Greece, moved to England as an engineer, and was awarded an MA in Creative Writing by the University of f0 East Anglia.

About the Author:

Panos Karnezis was born in Greece in 1967. He came to England in 1992 to study engineering, and worked in industry before starting to write. He was awarded an MA in Creative Writing by the University of East Anglia. His first book, Little Infamies, was published in 2002. He lives in London.

About this edition

• Publisher: Vintage Books
• Publication date: 2005
• ISBN 10: 0099449951
• ISBN 13: 9780099449959
• Binding: Paperback
• Edition number: 1