The haunting new novel from Paul Bailey, whose work has been short-listed twice for the Booker prize. At the age of 70, Andrew Peters suddenly finds himself speaking in the language he has not used since childhood, when he came to live with his doting Uncle Rudolf . Rudolf transformed Andrew's world. Looking back across the years, Andrew remembers the captivating man who rescued him in 1937 from a likely death in fascist Romania. A sublimely gifted lyric tenor, Rudolf's talent had exiled him from his native land, leading him to Paris, Vienna and London, where he became a much-loved star in operetta. He turns all his hopes and sardonic humour upon Andrew, and the gauche child from a remote country town becomes what Rudolf wants him to be -- an English gentleman. Vivid, often hilarious stories of Rudolf's brilliant but blighted career and of his eccentric household are intertwined with the slow unfolding of the secrets that have shadowed Andrew's otherwise happy life. Told in matchless prose, this deeply moving novel captures a vanished epoch and a way of life with exquisite tact and restraint.
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Advance praise for Uncle Rudolf:
"An exceptionally tender and vivid account of a little boy's expulsion from his own country and language. Tremendous."--Beryl Bainbridge, author of Master Georgie and Birthday Boys
"I read it in one sitting and think it echoing and beautiful; so graciously pitched, perfectly poised, balanced on its hair-breadth between grief and delight. It moved me terribly. I loved it." --Ali Smith, author of Hotel World and Free Love
"Andrew himself is an appealing narrator: honest, troubled, perceptive. It is the clarity of his vision that gives the novel its crisp and satisfying accuracy, and makes it one of Paul Bailey's best books." --Penelope Lively, author of The Photograph
Praise for Paul Bailey's previous book, Kitty & Virgil:
"Crackles with repartee and literary allusion...Compelling. "
--The Washington Post Book World
"Luminous... told with empathy, elegance, and unfailing delight in language."--Publishers Weekly
Paul Bailey is the author of At the Jerusalem (1967) which won the Somerset Maugham Award,Trespasses (1970),A Distant Likeness (1973), Peter Smart's Confessions (1977), shortlisted for the Booker Prize, Old Soldiers (1980), and Sugar Cane (1993). He was the first recipient of the E.M. Forster Award and won a George Orwell Prize for his essay 'The Limitations of Despair'.
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First Edition, Uncorrected Proof. Near fine copy in the original stiff-card wrappers; edges very slightly dust-dulled and toned. Remains particularly and surprisingly well-preserved; tight, bright, clean and especially sharp-cornered. Physical description; 183 p. ; 21 cm. Subjects; Autobiographical memory ; Fiction. Romanians England ; Fiction. Tenors (Singers) Europe ; Fiction. Europe Social life and customs 20th century ; Fiction. Genre; Fiction. 1 Kg. Seller Inventory # 309437
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First edition. Proof copy. Very good paperback copy; cover slightly creased and dulled as with age. Bright and clean internally. Remains particularly well-preserved overall. Physical description: 184 pages; 21 cm. Subjects: Autobiographical memory; Fiction. Romanians England; Fiction. Tenors (Singers) Europe; Fiction.Autobiographical memory.Manners and customs.Romanians. Tenors (Singers). Europe Social life and customs 20th century; Fiction. Genre:Fiction. Novel. Psychological fiction. Summary: Reminiscing, 70 year old Andrew remembers his uncle - a lyric tenor who ended up in operetta - who rescued him from a likely death in fascist Romania. Stories of Rudolf's career and eccentric household are intertwined with the unfolding of secrets that have shadowed Andrew's otherwise happy life. 1 Kg. Seller Inventory # 339645
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First Edition, Uncorrected Proof. Near fine copy in the original stiff-card wrappers; edges very slightly dust-dulled and toned. Remains particularly and surprisingly well-preserved; tight, bright, clean and especially sharp-cornered. Physical description; 183 p. ; 21 cm. Subjects; Autobiographical memory ; Fiction. Romanians England ; Fiction. Tenors (Singers) Europe ; Fiction. Europe Social life and customs 20th century ; Fiction. Genre; Fiction. 1 Kg. Seller Inventory # 309437
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Seller: MW Books Ltd., Galway, Ireland
First edition. Proof copy. Very good paperback copy; cover slightly creased and dulled as with age. Bright and clean internally. Remains particularly well-preserved overall. Physical description: 184 pages; 21 cm. Subjects: Autobiographical memory; Fiction. Romanians England; Fiction. Tenors (Singers) Europe; Fiction.Autobiographical memory.Manners and customs.Romanians. Tenors (Singers). Europe Social life and customs 20th century; Fiction. Genre:Fiction. Novel. Psychological fiction. Summary: Reminiscing, 70 year old Andrew remembers his uncle - a lyric tenor who ended up in operetta - who rescued him from a likely death in fascist Romania. Stories of Rudolf's career and eccentric household are intertwined with the unfolding of secrets that have shadowed Andrew's otherwise happy life. 1 Kg. Seller Inventory # 339645
Quantity: 1 available