Overview
""Those of you who stay with Blas de Robles's ultimately quite satisfying novel will find yourselves with a new European literary star to steer by.""-Alan Cheuse, NPR A stolen diamond and three right feet, wearing shoes of a non-existent brand, that wash ashore in Scotland set into motion the first plot of Island of Point Nemo, a rollicking Jules Verne-like adventure narrative that crosses continents and oceans, involves multilingual codes, a world-famous villain, and three eccentrically loopy detectives. Running parallel is the story of B@bil Books, an e-reader factory in France filled with its own set of colorful characters, including the impotent Dieumercie and his randy wife, who will stop at nothing-including a suspect ritual involving bees-to fix his ""problem,"" and their abusive boss Wang-ilWong, obsessed with carrier pigeons and spying on his employees. With the humor of a Jasper Fforde novel, and the structure of a Haruki Murakami one, Island of Point Nemois a literary puzzle and grand testament to the power of storytelling-even in our digital age. Born in Algeria, Jean-Marie Blas de Robles is a truly international writer, having spent significant time in Brazil, France, Taiwan, and Libya. His novel Where Tigers Are at Home won the Fnac, Giono, and Medicis Prizes. Island of Point Nemo is his ninth novel. Hannah Chute has an MA in translation from the University of Rochester. In 2015, she received the Banff Centre Scholarship to work on Island of Point Nemo, her first full-length translation.
Full Product Details
Author: Jean-Marie Blas de Robles ,
Hannah Chute
Publisher: Open Letter
Imprint: Open Letter
ISBN: 9781940953625
ISBN 10: 1940953626
Pages: 450
Publication Date: 31 August 2017
Audience:
General/trade
,
General
Format: Paperback
Publisher's Status: Active
Availability: Temporarily unavailable
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Reviews
Psychodrama meets history meets mystery--vintage Umberto Eco territory, as practiced by French philosophy professor turned novelist Blas de Robles. --Kirkus Reviews Blas de Robles takes great pleasure in mixing styles and genres, and Island of Point Nemo is both an adventure-tale of the very traditional sort, moving quickly from one exciting episode to the next, as well as a much more relaxed larger project, demonstrating that: 'Every sentence written is presage'. --The Complete Review
Psychodrama meets history meets mystery vintage Umberto Eco territory, as practiced by French philosophy professor turned novelist Blas de Robles.  Kirkus Reviews Blas de Robles takes great pleasure in mixing styles and genres, and Island of Point Nemo is both an adventure-tale of the very traditional sort, moving quickly from one exciting episode to the next, as well as a much more relaxed larger project, demonstrating that: 'Every sentence written is presage'.  The Complete Review
Author Information
Born in Algeria, Jean-Marie Blas de Robles is a truly international writer, having spent significant time in Brazil, France, Taiwan, and Libya. In addition to writing novels (Where Tigers Are at Home, in English from Other Press and recipient of the Fnac, Giono, Medicis Prizes), he's a philosopher, and, following his participation in underwater archaeological excavations in Libya, he began editing a collection of archaeology books for disud. Island of Point Nemo is his ninth novel. Hannah Chute has an MA in translation from the University of Rochester, where she also studied harp at the Eastman School of Music. In 2015 she received the Banff Centre Scholarship to work on Island of Point Nemo, her first full-length translation.
