The Separation (2002)
Christopher Priest
Book Description
Researching the war between Britain and Nazi Germany, which ended in May 1941, historian Stuart Gratton becomes intrigued by the enigma of J. L. Sawyer, an obscure figure who played a key part in bringing the conflict to its conclusion. As he digs deeper, he discovers there were two J. L. Sawyers – identical twins Jack and Joe, one a bomber pilot and the other a conscientious objector – divided both by their love for the same woman and their attitudes towards the war. But as the brothers’ story emerges from books, letters, and diaries, the evidence does not all add up, and there may be an even wider separation between them – divergent realities, in which different possibilities and unexpected truths emerge, and nothing is quite what it seems.
Both a brilliant historical novel about World War II and one of the best works of alternate history ever written, Christopher Priest’s The Separation earned the Arthur C. Clarke and BSFA Awards and ranks among his finest achievements. Like his classics The Affirmation and The Prestige, it is an engrossing literary puzzle that will keep readers turning the pages until its startling conclusion.
Christopher Priest
Book Description
Researching the war between Britain and Nazi Germany, which ended in May 1941, historian Stuart Gratton becomes intrigued by the enigma of J. L. Sawyer, an obscure figure who played a key part in bringing the conflict to its conclusion. As he digs deeper, he discovers there were two J. L. Sawyers – identical twins Jack and Joe, one a bomber pilot and the other a conscientious objector – divided both by their love for the same woman and their attitudes towards the war. But as the brothers’ story emerges from books, letters, and diaries, the evidence does not all add up, and there may be an even wider separation between them – divergent realities, in which different possibilities and unexpected truths emerge, and nothing is quite what it seems.
Both a brilliant historical novel about World War II and one of the best works of alternate history ever written, Christopher Priest’s The Separation earned the Arthur C. Clarke and BSFA Awards and ranks among his finest achievements. Like his classics The Affirmation and The Prestige, it is an engrossing literary puzzle that will keep readers turning the pages until its startling conclusion.
reviews
‘An astonishing achievement.’ – Locus
‘A masterly novel that deserves to become a classic.’ – The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction
‘A complex and enigmatic tale of identity, illusion and deception.’ – Glasgow Herald
‘Superbly constructed, the prose admirably spare and elegant . . . a queasily gripping and intelligent work of fiction.’ – Daily Telegraph
‘A subtle, unsettling alternative WWII history.’ – Publishers Weekly (starred review)
‘A masterly novel that deserves to become a classic.’ – The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction
‘A complex and enigmatic tale of identity, illusion and deception.’ – Glasgow Herald
‘Superbly constructed, the prose admirably spare and elegant . . . a queasily gripping and intelligent work of fiction.’ – Daily Telegraph
‘A subtle, unsettling alternative WWII history.’ – Publishers Weekly (starred review)
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BOOK DETAILS
ISBN: 1954321449 ISBN-13: 978-1954321441 $29.99 US, 354 pp. Case Laminate Hardcover Published 2015 BOOK DETAILS
ISBN: 1941147909 ISBN-13: 978-1941147900 $18.99 US, 354 pp. Trade paper Published 2015 |
Due to copyright restrictions, this title is only available to U.S. customers.
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AUTHOR BIOGRAPHY
Christopher Priest was born in Cheshire, England in 1943. He began writing soon after leaving school and has been a full-time freelance writer since 1968. He has published thirteen novels, four short story collections and a number of other books, including critical works, biographies, novelizations, and children’s nonfiction.
Priest first gained notice with short stories contributed to science fiction magazines such as Impulse and New Worlds in the 1960s and later won widespread acclaim for his novels, including Inverted World (1974), The Affirmation (1981), and The Glamour (1984). The success of these novels, which have gone on to be recognized as classics of the genre, led Granta to name Priest one of the top young British novelists in its 1983 list. More recently, The Prestige (1995) won both the James Tait Black Memorial Prize for best novel of the year and the World Fantasy Award and was adapted for a major Hollywood film directed by Christopher Nolan, and The Separation (2002) won both the Arthur C. Clarke and BSFA Awards. Priest’s work has also earned major awards internationally, including the Kurd Laßwitz Award (Germany), the Eurocon Award (Yugoslavia), the Ditmar Award (Australia), and Le Grand Prix de L’Imaginaire (France). In 2001 he was awarded the Prix Utopia (France) for lifetime achievement.
In addition to writing books, Priest has written drama for radio and television, and as a journalist he has written features and reviews for The Times, the Guardian, the Independent, the New Statesman, the Scotsman, and many different magazines.
His most recent novel, The Adjacent, was published in the U.S. in April 2014.
Priest first gained notice with short stories contributed to science fiction magazines such as Impulse and New Worlds in the 1960s and later won widespread acclaim for his novels, including Inverted World (1974), The Affirmation (1981), and The Glamour (1984). The success of these novels, which have gone on to be recognized as classics of the genre, led Granta to name Priest one of the top young British novelists in its 1983 list. More recently, The Prestige (1995) won both the James Tait Black Memorial Prize for best novel of the year and the World Fantasy Award and was adapted for a major Hollywood film directed by Christopher Nolan, and The Separation (2002) won both the Arthur C. Clarke and BSFA Awards. Priest’s work has also earned major awards internationally, including the Kurd Laßwitz Award (Germany), the Eurocon Award (Yugoslavia), the Ditmar Award (Australia), and Le Grand Prix de L’Imaginaire (France). In 2001 he was awarded the Prix Utopia (France) for lifetime achievement.
In addition to writing books, Priest has written drama for radio and television, and as a journalist he has written features and reviews for The Times, the Guardian, the Independent, the New Statesman, the Scotsman, and many different magazines.
His most recent novel, The Adjacent, was published in the U.S. in April 2014.