The Queen's Necklace
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The Queen's Necklace by Len Rix
'A sparkling slice of eighteenth-century life' Paul Bailey, Independent In August 1785 Paris buzzed with scandal. An eminent churchman, a notorious charlatan, a female fraudster, a part-time prostitute and the hated Queen herself were all involved. At its heart was the most expensive diamond necklace ever assembled - and the web of fraud, folly and self-delusion it had inspired. In Szerb's last major work, a witty and often surprising account of events, the story is used as a standpoint from which to survey the entire age. Written in war-torn Hungary in the early 1940s, it constitutes a remarkable gesture of defiance against the brutal world in which the writer lived and died.
"A sparkling slice of 18th century life" - Paul Bailey, Independent
"An 18th-century scam involving Marie Antoinette, an ambitious jeweller, a charlatan doctor and a countess on the make is the subject of this engaging book. Antal Szerb was a Hungarian novelist who wrote what he called this 'real history' in 1942 and died in a labour camp in 1945. Knowing his fate lends poignancy to his witty, learned and illuminating portrayal of the ancien regime on the brink of the Revolution." - Katie Owen, Telegraph's Pick of the Paperbacks
"The Queen's Necklace is a wonderful book; both thoughtful and blasting, and another revelation of Szerb's light-footed erudition." - Ali Smith
'Szerb belongs with the master novelists of the 20th century." - Paul Bailey, Daily Telegraph
"May Szerb's entry into our literary pantheon be definitive." - Alberto Manguel, Financial Times
"Szerb is a master novelist whose powers transcend time and language." - Nicholas Lezard, Guardian
"An 18th-century scam involving Marie Antoinette, an ambitious jeweller, a charlatan doctor and a countess on the make is the subject of this engaging book. Antal Szerb was a Hungarian novelist who wrote what he called this 'real history' in 1942 and died in a labour camp in 1945. Knowing his fate lends poignancy to his witty, learned and illuminating portrayal of the ancien regime on the brink of the Revolution." - Katie Owen, Telegraph's Pick of the Paperbacks
"The Queen's Necklace is a wonderful book; both thoughtful and blasting, and another revelation of Szerb's light-footed erudition." - Ali Smith
'Szerb belongs with the master novelists of the 20th century." - Paul Bailey, Daily Telegraph
"May Szerb's entry into our literary pantheon be definitive." - Alberto Manguel, Financial Times
"Szerb is a master novelist whose powers transcend time and language." - Nicholas Lezard, Guardian
Antal Szerb was born in Budapest in 1901. Though of Jewish descent, he was baptised at an early age and remained a lifelong Catholic. He rapidly established himself as a formidable scholar, through studies of Ibsen and Blake and histories of English, Hungarian and world literature. He was a prolific essayist and reviewer, ranging across all the major European languages. Debarred by successive Jewish laws from working in a university, he was subjected to increasing persecution, and finally murdered in a forced labour camp in 1945. Pushkin Press publishes his novels The Pendragon Legend, Oliver VII and his masterpiece Journey by Moonlight, as well as the historical study The Queen's Necklace and Love in a Bottle and Other Stories.
| SKU | Unavailable |
| ISBN 13 | 9781782274476 |
| ISBN 10 | 1782274472 |
| Title | The Queen's Necklace |
| Author | Len Rix |
| Series | Pushkin Blues Ser |
| Condition | Unavailable |
| Binding Type | Paperback |
| Publisher | Pushkin Press |
| Year published | 2018-10-04 |
| Number of pages | 384 |
| Cover note | Book picture is for illustrative purposes only, actual binding, cover or edition may vary. |
| Note | Unavailable |