The Songs of the Kings - Softcover

Unsworth, Barry

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0525435247 ISBN 13: 9780525435242

Publisher: Anchor, 2017

Synopsis

A brilliant retelling of an ancient myth, The Songs of the Kings offers up a different narrative of the Trojan War, one devoid of honor, wherein the mission to rescue Helen is a pretext for plundering Troy of its treasures. As the ships of the Greek fleet find themselves stalled in the straits at Aulis, waiting vainly for the gods to deliver more favorable winds, Odysseus cynically advances a call for the sacrifice of Agamemnon’s daughter, Calchas the diviner interprets events for the reader, and a Homer-like figure called the Singer is persuaded to proclaim a tale of a just war to hide the corrupt motivations of those in power. But couched within the Singer’s spin is a message at once timely and timeless: “There is always another story. But it is the stories told by the strong, the songs of kings, that are believed in the end.”

About this title

From the Back Cover

"The updating of a classic is risky: it can be a hollow conceit, like a duff production of Shakespeare in modern dress. In Barry Unsworth’s hands, the venture turns to pure gold. This novel is a resounding success, clever, funny, provocative, erudite... [It] is one of the best books by this most versatile of writers."– Penelope Lively

"The Songs of the Kings is an “elegant, profound and wonder-provoking book. Unsworth’s writing is unrivaled, he gets better and better, and his versatility is breathtaking. His novels are close to perfect in an imperfect literary world."– Ruth Rendell

"... intellectually agile, thrillingly stylish...The Songs of the Kings effortlessly proves that modern life is the stuff of ancient myth."
–The Guardian

"The Songs of the Kings is a beautifully measured entertainment given gravity by how accurately it reflects the present political zeal to control the media."– The Independent

"Unsworth’s story never falters..."– The [London] Times

"[The Songs of the Kings] is brilliantly told. This short, sharp tale deserves to be on the shelves of revisionists and purists alike."
–The List

From the Inside Flap

meant one thing only to the men gathered here, as it did to their commanders. Troy was a dream of wealth; and if the wind continued the dream would crumble.”

As the harsh wind holds the Greek fleet trapped in the straits at Aulis, frustration and political impotence turn into a desire for the blood of a young and innocent woman – blood that will appease the gods and allow the troops to set sail. And when Iphigeneia, Agamemnon’s beloved daughter, is brought to the coast under false pretences, and when a knife is fashioned out of the finest and most precious of materials, it looks as if the ships will soon be on their way. But can a father really go to these lengths to secure political victory, and can a daughter willingly give up her life for the worldly ambitions of her father?

Throwing off the heroic values we expect of them, Barry Unsworth’s mythic characters embrace the political ethos of the twenty-first century and speak in words we recognize as

About this edition

• Publisher: Anchor
• Publication date: 2017
• ISBN 10: 0525435247
• ISBN 13: 9780525435242
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 352