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The Siege (Paperback)

by Ismail Kadare (Author), David Bellos (Translator)
4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
RRP: £7.99
Price: £5.98 & this item Delivered FREE in the UK with Super Saver Delivery. See details and conditions
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Product details

  • Paperback: 336 pages
  • Publisher: Canongate Books Ltd (5 Mar 2009)
  • Language English
  • ISBN-10: 1847671225
  • ISBN-13: 978-1847671226
  • Product Dimensions: 19.6 x 13 x 2.8 cm
  • Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
  • Amazon.co.uk Sales Rank: 119,945 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Product Description

Review

'His fiction offers invaluable insights into life under tyranny - his historical allegories point both to the grand themes and small details that make up life in a restrictive environment. He is a great writer, by any nation's standards.' Financial Times

Telegraph

Battle scenes predominate, and are admirably vivid, the narrative swirling and bursting --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.
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The Siege
86% buy the item featured on this page:
The Siege 4.8 out of 5 stars (6)
£5.98
Chronicle in Stone
6% buy
Chronicle in Stone 5.0 out of 5 stars (4)
£5.96
General of the Dead Army (Vintage Classics)
3% buy
General of the Dead Army (Vintage Classics) 4.6 out of 5 stars (7)
£5.23
The Palace of Dreams (Vintage Classics)
3% buy
The Palace of Dreams (Vintage Classics) 5.0 out of 5 stars (2)
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Customer Reviews

6 Reviews
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Average Customer Review
4.8 out of 5 stars (6 customer reviews)
 
 
 
 
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5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars Gripping...Kadare is a wonderful story teller!, 1 Dec 2008
By Mr. Klaus Muecher "Klaus Muecher" (West Sussex, England) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   
This review is from: The Siege (Hardcover)
Translated from the Albanian language, this anti-historical novel embraces the events of a siege on an unnamed castle in Albania during the expansion of the Ottoman Empire in the 14th century into the Balkans and before the siege on Constantinople. Wonderfully written in colourful language, with gentle transitions from one place to another, Ismail Kadare educates the reader about the worries and struggles of both armies. This is achieved brilliantly by the insertion of inter-chapters. The historical background about `Skanderbeg', the principles of battles, siege warfare and the new weapons used at the time convinces to be thoroughly researched.
As the story unfolds mainly from the viewpoint of the besieging army, it manages to cleverly describe the Albanian populous facing the overwhelming power of the Ottoman armies. Somewhere between the lines you can read indirectly about Albania in the 20th century, e.g. the Russian dominance in 1969 and the atrocities of Milosevic in 1989. Overall I think this is a fantastic book, written by a very clever man!
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21 of 25 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars A thought-provoking and hugely engrossing work of genius, 19 May 2008
By Leo McMarley (Edinburgh) - See all my reviews
This review is from: The Siege (Hardcover)
I've been a fan of Kadare's for some time but I think this new book of his (I say new when in fact it first appeared in 1970!) is as good as anything I have read this year and one of the great novels about war I have ever read.

It tells the story of the Ottomans besieging a Christian fortress in the fifteenth century in Albania and does so in the most vivid and utterly convincing prose. You feel transported back in time and yet the novel is also timeless. I read a brilliant review by Adam Lively in The Sunday Times yesterday and he described how some of the intense battle scenes brought to mind Sauron's army besieging the citadel of Minas Tirith in the final part of the Lord of the Rings trilogy and he is right. It's every bit as bloody, tense and compelling.

But the novel is also a deeply philosophical work, asking timeless questions about war and revealing its futility. An existential masterpiece stained in blood and guts.

If you haven't read Kadare you are in for a treat and this is the place to start.



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6 of 8 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars A profound thriller, 11 Oct 2008
This review is from: The Siege (Hardcover)
Kadare is less economical in his use of words producing a creative, colourful and descriptive narrative of a tense prolongued seige, reflecting on the effects and consequences of war. As usual Kadare skilfully weaves profund alegory into an easily readable story with excitment, suspense and emotion. A fantastic read.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5 stars Outstanding as Both Historical Fiction and Allegory
Originally published in Albania in 1970, and then translated into French in the mid-90s, this excellent novel has finally made it into English. Read more
Published 4 months ago by A. Ross

4.0 out of 5 stars Not a Historical Novel, Not Quite as Great as Some Reviewers Say...
On the surface this appears to be the story of the siege of a medieval Albanian fortress by the Ottoman Turks. Read more
Published 7 months ago by wolf

5.0 out of 5 stars A magnificent book
This is an easy read. It's a great story too. I'm pretty sure that, were I to be an intellectual, I would find a lot more in this book. Read more
Published 18 months ago by J. S. Davies

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