The King
2016 Longlist

The King

Translated from the Dutch by Nancy Forest-Flier

ABOUT
THE BOOK

It is the nineteenth century and the kingdom of Persia is at a turning point. When a young King, Shah Naser, takes to the throne he inherits a medieval, enchanted world. But beyond the court, the greater forces of colonisation and industrialisation close in. The Shah’s grand vizier sees only one solution – to open up to the outside world, and to bring Persia into modernity. But the Shah’s mother fiercely opposes the vizier’s reforms and sets about poisoning her son’s mind against his advisor.

With bloody battles, intrigue and extraordinary characters, The King brings a historical moment brilliantly to life. Reading as fairy tale and shedding light on a pivotal period in history.

ABOUT
THE AUTHOR Kader
Abdolah

Kader Abdolah was born in Iran in 1954. While a student of physics in Tehran, he joined a secret leftist party that fought against the dictatorship of the shah and the subsequent dictatorship of the ayatollahs. Abdolah wrote for an illegal journal and clandestinely published two books in Iran. In 1988, at the invitation of the United Nations, he arrived in the Netherlands as a political refugee.

Kader Abdolah now writes in Dutch and is the author of several novels, including My Father’s Notebook and two collections of short stories, as well as works of non-fiction.

Kader Abdolah was born in Iran in 1954. While a student of physics in Tehran, he joined a secret leftist party that fought against the dictatorship of the shah and the subsequent dictatorship of the ayatollahs. Abdolah wrote for an illegal journal and clandestinely published two books in Iran. In 1988, at the invitation of the United Nations, he arrived in the Netherlands as a political refugee.

Kader Abdolah now writes in Dutch and is the author of several novels, including My Father’s Notebook and two collections of short stories, as well as works of non-fiction.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

Date published
08/01/2015
Country
Iran, Netherlands
Original Language
Dutch
Author
Publisher
Canongate Books
Translator
Nancy Forest-Flier
Translation
Translated from the Dutch by Nancy Forest-Flier

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