Books published by publisher Peter Owen Publishers

Haitov’s tales are set in the small villages of the Rhodope Mountains in south-east Bulgaria, one of the most remote corners of Europe. They are related in a robust, down-to-earth style by a series of finely realized narrators, most of whom look back to the ea rly years of this century and beyond, when brides were stolen and bandits roamed the hills. These men – shepherds, shoemakers, coopers and foresters –speak to the reader directly, involving him in their triumphs, their disappointments, their exploits in love or in business. Each has a tale to tell, and tells it superbly; indeed, so vivid and engrossing are their stories, and such is the skill with which Haitov utilizes the rhythms and idioms .of colloquial speech, that one seems to be actually listening to rather than reading these stirring tales of ‘those far-off days when men were men’. This collection, superbly translated by Michael Holman, reveals Nikolai Haitov as one of the contempo rary masters of the short- story form and provides an ideal introduction to the little-known literature of Bulgaria.

Coming somewhere between Peter Ackroyd and Perfume, Doubting Thomas is an innovative and fascinating novel about the renowned Italian painter Caravaggio. The plot centers around the events of a May evening in Rome in 1606, when Caravaggio was challenged to a duel and killed a man. Who was this man Caravaggio? What happened on that fateful night? What was the cause of the fight that forced him to flee Rome? Different narrators, including a drunken architect, the painter's own brother, some ladies of the night, a town clerk, and a close friend of Caravaggio all present their versions of the events that took place that night, shedding light on what happened and, as a result, on the painter's revolutionary art. Doubting Thomas is a book about ideas and about a period in time that witnessed the coming of enlightenment and dramatic changes in thinking. It is first and foremost a novel about human destiny, sensuality, and purpose of mind; brutality and love, exploration, and devotion. How far can a painter go? Where is the line between what is sacred and what is profane? How can a drunkard and a womaniser such as Caravaggio create art that speaks of fervent aesthetics and even religious devotion?

A spare, powerful, supremely graceful novel from a giant of Norwegian literature As strange, unsettling, and memorable as The Ice Palace, this remarkable novel carries with it all the compassion, human insight, and lyrical power of all great Vesaas novels. It describes the changing relationships between three adolescents—an unmarried mother who has drowned her newborn child and the girl and boy who befriend her. Their individual reactions to the tragedy and their efforts to communicate with each other form the central theme of the narrative.

The past comes to haunt contemporary London in this evocation of the life of the little-known Roman boy-emperor Heliogabalus. The Roman gay world is mirrored in Jim's relations with his duplicitous partner Danny and the contemporary London scene they inhabit. Events take a weird twist when Jim discovers that his partner is living a double life as a member of a Soho cult involving bizarre sex rites on Hampstead Heath. Jim, repulsed by the cult's activities, finds his relationship with Danny at an end and that he has become a target for the leader's reprisals. He is forced to take refuge with a female friend, Masako, with whom he visits Rome to investigate sites associated with Heliogabalus. She leads him to a meeting with a wealthy young man called Antonio who claims to be the emperor reincarnated. When Jim and Masako return to London, Antonio pays them a visit which leads to a conclusion every bit as dramatic as Heliogabalus' own murder. An electrifying poetic recreation of a bizarre period of ancient history, this narrative also dissolves boundaries of gender in the complex relationship of Jim and Masako.

Coming somewhere between Peter Ackroyd and Perfume, Doubting Thomas is an innovative and fascinating novel about the renowned Italian painter Caravaggio. The plot centres around the events of a May evening in Rome in 1606, when Caravaggio was challenged to a duel and killed a man. Who was this man Caravaggio? What happened on that fateful night? What was the cause of the fight that forced him to flee Rome? Different narrators, including a drunken architect, the painter's own brother, some ladies of the night, a town clerk and a close friend of Caravaggio all present their versions of the events that took place that night, shedding light on what happened and, as a result, on the painter's revolutionary art. Doubting Thomas is a book about ideas and about a period in time that witnessed the coming of enlightenment and dramatic changes in thinking. It is first and foremost a novel about human destiny, sensuality and purpose of mind; brutality and love, exploration and devotion. How far can a painter go? Where is the line between what is sacred and what is profane? How can a drunkard and a womaniser such as Caravaggio create art that speaks of fervent aesthetics and even religious devotion?

In the months following his wife’s death, Mr. Preemby, a retired laundryman, becomes convinced that he is the incarnation of Sargon, the ancient king of Sumeria, returned to save a world upturned by World War I. Trying to make sense of Mr. Preemby is his stepdaughter, Christina Alberta. A masterclass in comic invention, Christina Alberta’s Father depicts characters who long for something to believe in, just so long as it is not "some horrible Utopia by Wells," but whose attempts to change the world are always doomed to disappointment. Whether taken as a social satire, a psychological study or a critique of Wells’s own beliefs and relationships, this book makes for a fascinating and delightful read.

A fable about the disintegration of a good man. At the insistence of his wife, Eibenschutz leaves his job as an artilleryman in the Austro-Hungarian army for a civilian job as the inspector of weights and measures in a remote territory, near the Russian border. Attempting to exercise some proper rectitude in his trade duties, he is at a loss in a world of smugglers, profiteers, and small crooks. Eibenschutz soon finds he can no longer distinguish law from justice. When he discovers that his wife is pregnant by his own clerk, he spends more time away from home. Spending his hours at the border tavern, he finds himself hopelessly drawn to a beautiful gypsy woman, Euphemia. But she is prepared to share the bed of the landlord and Eibenschutz's enemy, Jadlowker, an unprincipled profiteer who has made the tavern a beacon for local smuggling activity.

An extraordinary, highly acclaimed novel from Korea, revealing how the conflict of the secular and the divine manifests in the real world. Bak Bugil's father is a genius. Everyone in the village expects him to pass the civil service examination and become a judge, but he hasn't been seen since he left to study in Seoul. Bak lives with his mother and his father's relations. At the end of a path that leads to the rear of their house is a persimmon tree and an old ramshackle hut. Children are forbidden by grownups to go near the tree, but Bak makes repeated incursions to collect the forbidden fruit. Finally, an encounter with the inhabitant of the hut changes his life forever. Decades later, a journalist (the narrator) is asked to write an article about one of South Korea's most unique writers, Bak Bugil. Initially reluctant, the journalist begins to develop a curiosity about Bak's past. Upon meeting Bak, it becomes clear that he finds childhood recollection painful and difficult, but the journalist knows that that if he is to write a single word about Bak it will be impossible without unearthing that history. Dealing with childhood shame, abandonment, rebellion, first love, and religious experimentation, this extraordinary novel cemented its author's reputation as one of the stars of South Korea's literary scene.

Set amongst the hills, vineyards, and villages of Piedmont, this tale centers on three young men as they spend what is seemingly their last free summer talking, drinking, and enjoying life. Fascinated with their wealthy acquaintance, Poli, they soon find themselves embedded in his world—his cocaine addiction, his blasphemy, and his corrupt circle of friends.