Ismaîl Kadaré

This work is unusual in that it takes place in ancient Egypt, though a reader would have to be exceptionally dull to miss the book-length metaphor—a sharp and penetrating indictment of despotism. The story itself is simple: Cheops has to be convinced to order the creation of a pyramid in his honor and memory. His advisors do so by explaining that only by oppressing his otherwise increasingly contented people can he effectively maintain power: only by making the people miserable can they be truly content. Much of the book is given over to a recounting of each day’s progress in the pyramid’s construction and its cost in human lives. The book is a meditation on the paranoia of absolute power.… (more)

I had never heard of Ismail Kadare prior to being introduced to his name via a discussion on Goodreads with Daniel and Sarah.

The File on H. is a fictionalized story. Loosely based on researchers Albert Lord’s and Milman Parry’s investigation of whether Homer's works were original or based on oral tradition, the book sounded completely out of my comfort zone.

Originally written in Albanian, the English version was translated from the French. Set in the 1930's there is something for almost everyone: Spies, intrigue, myths, legends, jealousy, romance, quirky satire, poetry, music and the more serious references to Lord's and Parry's actual research.

The story isn’t perfect and there is an undercurrent of the author’s nationalism. Still, I ended up really enjoying the book, both the oddly humorous introductory chapters and the more serious parts of the book.
… (more)