Brodeck's Report [Paperback]

'This extraordinary novel … deeply wise and classically beautiful … is a modern masterpiece' Helen Brown, Daily Telegraph.

'The novel transforms modern history into a fable that merges Kafka and the Grimms' Boyd Tonkin, Independent.

'This triumph of a book serves as an unsettling reminder that there are no fairy tales and there are certainly no heroes' Buzz.

'The novel's quiet beauty and scenes of extreme poignancy make it resonate beyond its pages' Daily Telegraph.

'A magnificent book' Le Monde.

'Original, brilliant and disturbing... a journey that goes to the heart of what it means to be human' Ruth Scurr, the Times.

From his village in post-war France, Brodeck makes his solitary journeys into the mountains to collect data on the natural environment. Day by day he also reconstructs his own life, all but lost in the years he spent in a camp during the war. No-one had expected to see him again. One day, a flamboyant stranger rides into the village, upsetting the fragile balance of everyday life. Soon he is named the Anderer, “the other”, and tensions rise until, one night, the newcomer is murdered. Brodeck is instructed to write an account of the events leading to his death, but his report delivers much more than the bare facts: it becomes the story of a community coming to terms with the legacy of enemy occupation. In a powerful narrative of exceptional fascination, Brodeck's Report explores the very limits of humanity.

From his village in post-war France, Brodeck makes his solitary journeys into the mountains to collect data on the natural environment. Day by day he also reconstructs his own life, all but lost in the years he spent in a camp during the war. No-one had expected to see him again. One day, a flamboyant strange rides into the village, upsetting the fragile balance of everyday life. Soon he is named the Anderer, 'the Other', and tensions rise until, one night, the newcomer is murdered. Brodeck is instructed to write an account of the events leading to his death, but his report delivers much more than the bare facts: it becomes the story of a community coming to terms with the legacy of enemy occupation. In a powerful narrative of exceptional fascination, Brodeck's Report explores the very limits of humanity.

Philippe Claudel is a university lecturer, novelist and film director, born in 1962 in Dombasle-sur-Meurthe. He woke up one morning with the opening sentence of Brodeck's Report in his head: “My name is Brodeck and I am not responsible.” John Cullen is a translator from French, Spanish, Italian and German. He has twice been shortlisted for the IMPAC award, and was shortlisted for the Duncan Lawrie International Dagger in 2007.