This is an epic journey through many hundreds of years of Eastern
culture, charting its shaping of world history following the almost
complete annihilation of Western civilization by a great plague.
The journey begins with Bold, a Mongolian army deserter, who
crosses the ravaged wastelands of the west until he reaches Egypt
where he is sold as a slave. There he meets Kyu, a young black
eunuch, and the two go on to find work in the Forbidden City in
Beijing. Thus begins this 're-incarnation compendium' in which Bold
and Kyu are born again many times over, escorting us through
history in their many guises - Chinese explorer, alchemist, Samurai
warrior, poet, doctor, physicist. But always their names begin with
the same letters, one of the many literary devices employed by the
author to help the reader steer a course through territory which is
both uncharted and unimaginable. The book chronicles a
centuries-long battle for supremacy - religious, military and
scientific - and culminates in a 'long war'. Although it has
obvious parallels with the first world war, with its vivid and
horrific descriptions of trench warfare, this is a 67-year conflict
between Chinese and Muslim civilization leaving a billion dead.
This weighty tome, biblical in its scope and style, provides a
challenging read, both in terms of size (over 700 pages) and in the
complexity of its arguments. These include lengthy explorations of
the world's religions and philosophies, technical descriptions of
scientific advances and military capability and involved discussion
of some of the great moral questions of history such as
distribution of wealth and the subjugation of women. The reader who
can cope with all of this will be left with an unforgettable
picture of how the world might have been and a sense of how events
could yet unfold. (Kirkus UK)
A vanguard of the Mongol horde rides west across the steppes into an eerily silent world. People lie dead in villages and in the streets of towns. The Black Death has struck Europe. There are virtually no survivors.
Into this empty land pour merchants, warlords and refugees, and from that day forward history is shaped by the East instead of the West. Japanese ships cross the Pacific Ocean and Chinese ships cross the Atlantic to colonise the New World, while a scientific revolution is begun in Samarkand. And the destinies of a cast of unforgettable characters weave a bright new pattern through seven hundred years of history as it never was, but might have been.
"This marvellous book may be the most hopeful thing you read for a long time"
'Evening Standard'
"A dazzling work of speculation with all the qualities of a great historical novel – it is by turns thrilling, tragic, funny and thoughtful"
'Scotsman'
"A huge, complex and highly enjoyable book"
'New Scientist'
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