Gentlemen of the Road
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'Every page holds a twist, while the prose is rich, but perfect in its control, and its calibration between the poetic and the exotic . . . readers might feel that they have reached the book equivalent of the Promised Land.' (The Times )
'It's been a while since I had such fun reading a book . . . It's like dipping into a leather-bound chronicle full of exciting legends and reminded me of the fathomless pleasure with which I used to read as a child. I was rapt.' (Daily Telegraph )
'From the opening sentence of this rip-roaring, swashbuckling yarn, you know you're in the hands of a master . . . That level of brio, invention and panache continues at breakneck pace throughout . . . smart, clever and stylish' (Scotland on Sunday )
'A rip-roaring ride of a novel' (Independent on Sunday )
'Intricate and exuberant . . . It's hard to resist its gathering momentum, not to mention the sheer headlong pleasure of Chabon's language.' (New York Times Book Review )
'a celebration of male friendship' (Sunday Telegraph )
'great fun' (Sunday Times )
'It's been a while since I had such fun reading a book . . . It's like dipping into a leather-bound chronicle full of exciting legends and reminded me of the fathomless pleasure with which I used to read as a child. I was rapt.' (Daily Telegraph )
'From the opening sentence of this rip-roaring, swashbuckling yarn, you know you're in the hands of a master . . . That level of brio, invention and panache continues at breakneck pace throughout . . . smart, clever and stylish' (Scotland on Sunday )
'A rip-roaring ride of a novel' (Independent on Sunday )
'Intricate and exuberant . . . It's hard to resist its gathering momentum, not to mention the sheer headlong pleasure of Chabon's language.' (New York Times Book Review )
'a celebration of male friendship' (Sunday Telegraph )
'great fun' (Sunday Times )
Daily Telegraph
'It's been a while since I had such fun reading a book...I loved it'
--This text refers to the
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Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
10 of 10 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
The subtitle to "Gentlemen of the road" is 'a tale of adventure' which is exactly what it is, and it's dedicated to Michael Moorcock, which is very telling too. Fabled lands of ancient history (where you can never really that what is fact and what is fiction), a pair of very different but both extremely likeable heroes and a host of colourful other characters, cities under siege and relentless pursuits on horseback... it's all there and very well done too. The language is at times difficult but ultimately shows how rich the English language is and to what great effect it can be used.
This book made me feel like I was twelve again and discovering for the first time Ivanhoe, Tarzan, or Verne's novels, reading them entranced and feeling, for the duration of the novel, how grand it must be to live a adventurer's life ;-)
This book made me feel like I was twelve again and discovering for the first time Ivanhoe, Tarzan, or Verne's novels, reading them entranced and feeling, for the duration of the novel, how grand it must be to live a adventurer's life ;-)
6 of 6 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
Award-winner Michael Chabon usually focuses on the disaffected of the present, or at least the near past.
But he goes over a thousand years into the past for "Gentlemen of the Road," an old-fashioned adventure story with some gloriously offbeat heroes. It's a fun, quirky read (the original, fitting title was "Jews With Swords"), with lots of unique twists but the prose gets a bit purple at times.
In caravans and on the road, the giant Abyssian Amram and gawky Frank Zelikman make money however they can -- even staging mock fights. After their ruse is found out by a weary mahout, he offers to take them on as bodyguards to a sullen young prince, Filaq. Then the mahout is murdered, and the two "Gentlemen of the Road" find themselves babysitting a snotty teen with a tendency to run away.
Unfortunately, the fortress they're heading for has been destroyed, and a gang of hired thugs kidnap Filaq. For no reason they can explain, Amram and Zelikman find themselves racing to rescue the kid, and beginning a quest full of checkered pasts, civil wars, ancient elephants... and the discovery that Filaq isn't quite who he seems to be.
There's something very classic about the flavour of "Gentlemen of the Road." Maybe it's because it was actually serialized in the New York Times Magazine, or maybe because Chabon apparently soaked up the works of Moorcock, Alexandre Dumas and Fritz Lieber. Think a Jewish version of Fafhrd and the Gray Mouser.
"Gentlemen of the Road" does have one flaw -- Chabon's prose gets dense and purple at times, which sent me spinning right off the narrative. But it does a pretty good job of evoking the dusty, harsh life of people on the march, brothels, attempted executions, ancient elephants, and the occasional mercenary joining up with the "gentlemen."
But Chabon doesn't let the story become leaden. He peppers it with wryly amusing dialogue ("Now, will you ride calmly behind me or do we need to bind you at the ankles, too?" "You had better bind my ankles") and the occasional running joke like Zelikman's mutilated hats. There's even a Norse axe humorously called "Defiler of All Mothers."
As you'd expect, Zelikman and Amram are likably rough, with some dark pasts -- one has left his home and family behind, the other has been roaming in search of his daughter for twenty years. Chabon doesn't try to make either a likable person, and that makes them even more so -- the same with Filiq, the feisty princess in drag.
"Gentlemen of the Road" is a solid adventure story, with a classic flavour and slightly overblown prose. Certainly a worthwhile read.
But he goes over a thousand years into the past for "Gentlemen of the Road," an old-fashioned adventure story with some gloriously offbeat heroes. It's a fun, quirky read (the original, fitting title was "Jews With Swords"), with lots of unique twists but the prose gets a bit purple at times.
In caravans and on the road, the giant Abyssian Amram and gawky Frank Zelikman make money however they can -- even staging mock fights. After their ruse is found out by a weary mahout, he offers to take them on as bodyguards to a sullen young prince, Filaq. Then the mahout is murdered, and the two "Gentlemen of the Road" find themselves babysitting a snotty teen with a tendency to run away.
Unfortunately, the fortress they're heading for has been destroyed, and a gang of hired thugs kidnap Filaq. For no reason they can explain, Amram and Zelikman find themselves racing to rescue the kid, and beginning a quest full of checkered pasts, civil wars, ancient elephants... and the discovery that Filaq isn't quite who he seems to be.
There's something very classic about the flavour of "Gentlemen of the Road." Maybe it's because it was actually serialized in the New York Times Magazine, or maybe because Chabon apparently soaked up the works of Moorcock, Alexandre Dumas and Fritz Lieber. Think a Jewish version of Fafhrd and the Gray Mouser.
"Gentlemen of the Road" does have one flaw -- Chabon's prose gets dense and purple at times, which sent me spinning right off the narrative. But it does a pretty good job of evoking the dusty, harsh life of people on the march, brothels, attempted executions, ancient elephants, and the occasional mercenary joining up with the "gentlemen."
But Chabon doesn't let the story become leaden. He peppers it with wryly amusing dialogue ("Now, will you ride calmly behind me or do we need to bind you at the ankles, too?" "You had better bind my ankles") and the occasional running joke like Zelikman's mutilated hats. There's even a Norse axe humorously called "Defiler of All Mothers."
As you'd expect, Zelikman and Amram are likably rough, with some dark pasts -- one has left his home and family behind, the other has been roaming in search of his daughter for twenty years. Chabon doesn't try to make either a likable person, and that makes them even more so -- the same with Filiq, the feisty princess in drag.
"Gentlemen of the Road" is a solid adventure story, with a classic flavour and slightly overblown prose. Certainly a worthwhile read.
4 of 4 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
And delightful to hold. An old-fashioned story, with princes, cutthroats, barbarians, and swords (no sorcery, just a bit of medicine). A doctor and an old soldier set to reconquer an old empire. '"What a pair of swindlers", an enemy said admirinly' The book yields what you expect from it.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
An excellent adventure story
I have read several Michael Chabon books in the past, which were mostly set in the USA or somewhere almost like it, and in the almost present day. Read more
Published 15 months ago by jan
Gentlemen Of The Road
Gentlemen Of The Road is about the adventures of two travellers as they make their way in lands around the Caspian Sea; the history of these lands as told during the two... Read more
Published on 23 May 2010 by A. Addis
The language is the road
Books just don't get much better than this. I bought it totally on a whim from an English language shelf while on honeymoon on a biking trip through Spain. Read more
Published on 10 Sep 2009 by Deleriad
The Past is Just as Strange as the Future
The first sentence of this book will tell you that you are in for a fun romp, literary style, as Chabon's prose immediately grabs your attention with its lush vocabulary and... Read more
Published on 3 Sep 2009 by Patrick Shepherd
Rollicking, roiling rumbustiousness
This book is simply wonderful. The story is set in the 10th century Black Sea region and features a cast of blackguards, miscreants, swindlers, liars and rogues. Read more
Published on 9 July 2009 by Shimacat
Gentlemen of the Road
I started to read this book with high hopes. It had been set as the 'monthly read' by our book club; also a very widely-read friend had recommended another Michael Chambon book... Read more
Published on 8 Jun 2009 by Rosie
More please!
Lots of fun, very rich and more than a touch educational. I really enjoyed following the main protagonists adventures. Read more
Published on 17 Feb 2009 by RMTooting
An adult 'Boy's own' adventure
A strange little book this. Looks like a 1950's boy's own adventure with it's, I have to say, rather charming illustrations. The story too could easily be a childrens story. Read more
Published on 13 Jan 2009 by Mr. A. I. Harrison
Wonderful Homage to Classic Adventure
This book should come with a big warning wrapper: "Michael Chabon's latest book is unlike his previous work, it is an homage to classic adventure writing -- your results may vary. Read more
Published on 29 April 2008 by A. Ross
Witty, flamboyant and fluid prose
Amram is a giant of a man, an African of uncertain origin, Zelikman, a Frank, tall and thin and as pale as Amram is dark; the two are travelling companions, gentlemen of the road. Read more
Published on 25 April 2008 by Benjamin
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