The File On H.: A Novel

From an author who has been called one of the most compelling novelists now writing in any language (Wall Street Journal), The File on H. is a profound and eloquent comment on one of the most intractable conflicts of our time.Two young American scholars voyage to the Albanian highlands, the last remaining natural habitat of the oral epic, with one of the world's first tape recorders in hand. Their mission? To discover how Homer could have composed works such as The Iliad and The Odyssey without ever writing them down. Their research puts them at the center of ethnic strife in the Balkans and, mistaken for foreign spies, they are placed under surveillance. Research and intrigue proceed apace, until a Serbian monk plots a violent end to their project."Part political parable, part comic roundelay, this engaging 1981 novel shows a comparatively lighter side of the great Albanian author... Masterly narrative use is made of Albanian folk beliefs, and the novel's violent climax and aftermath, in which "``Homer's revenge'' seems to assert itself, implies that there are mysteries not meant to be solved. Kadare's is a voice unlike any other in contemporary fiction, and this is one of his most unusual and attractive books." - Kirkus ReviewsIsmail Kadare, born in 1936 in Albania, is the country’s best-known poet and novelist. Since the appearance of The General of the Dead Army in 1965, Kadare has published scores of stories and novels that make up a panorama of Albanian history linked by constant meditation on the nature and human consequences of dictatorship. His works, particularly The Monster and The Palace of Dreams, brought him into frequent conflict with the authorities, and in 1990 he sought political asylum in France. In The Mid 1930s, Two Young Irish-american Scholars Voyage To The Albanian Highlands With An Early Model Of A Marvelous Invention, The Tape Recorder, In Hand. Their Mission? To Discover How Homer Could Have Composed Works As Brilliant And As Long As The Iliadand The Odyssey Without Ever Writing Them Down. The Answer, They Think, Can Be Found Only In Albania, The Last Remaining Natural Habitat Of The Oral Epic. But Immediately On Their Arrival The Scholars' Seemingly Arcane Research Puts Them At The Center Of Ethnic Strife In The Balkans. Mistaken For Foreign Spies, They Are Placed Under The Surveillance Of A Nearsighted Informer With A Prodigious Gift For Reproducing Conversations He Has Overheard. He Is Soon Generating A Stream Of Floridly Written Reports About The Visitors' Puzzling Activities. News Of Their Presence In The Provincial Town Of N------- Sets Gossip To Flying, And While The Town's Governor Speculates On Their Imminent Capture, His Pretty Wife, From Her Bath, Plots Her Delivery From A Marital Ennui Worthy Of Madame Bovary. Research And Intrigue Proceed Apace, But It Isn't Until A Fierce-eyed Monk From The Serbian Side Of The Mountains Makes His Appearance That The Scholars Glimpse The Full Political Import Of Their Search For The Key To The Homeric Question. Part Spy Novel, Part Comedy Of Errors, The File On H.is A Work Of Inventive Genius And Piercing Irony That May Be Ismail Kadare's Funniest And Most Accessible To Date. From An Author Who Has Been Called One Of The Most Compelling Novelists Now Writing In Any Language (wall Street Journal), It Is Also A Profound And Eloquent Comment On One Of The Most Intractable Conflicts Of Our Time. In the mid 1930s, two young Irish-American scholars voyage to the Albanian highlands with an early model of a marvelous invention, the tape recorder, in hand. Their mission? To discover how Homer could have composed works as brilliant and as long as the Iliad and the Odyssey without ever writing them down. The answer, they think, can be found only in Albania, the last remaining natural habitat of the oral epic. But immediately on their arrival the scholars' seemingly arcane research puts them at the center of ethnic strife in the Balkans. Mistaken for foreign spies, they are placed under the surveillance of a nearsighted informer with a prodigious gift for reproducing conversations he has overheard. He is soon generating a stream of floridly written reports about the visitors' puzzling activities. News of their presence in the provincial town of N-- sets gossip to flying, and while the town's governor speculates on their imminent capture, his pretty wife, from her bath, plots her delivery from a marital ennui worthy of Madame Bovary. Research and intrigue proceed apace, but it isn't until a fierce-eyed monk from the Serbian side of the mountains makes his appearance that the scholars glimpse the full political import of their search for the key to the Homeric question. In the mid 1930s, two young American scholars voyage to the Albanian highlands, the last remaining natural habitat of the oral epic, with one of the world's first tape recorders in hand. Their mission? To discover how Homer could have composed works such as The Iliad and The Odyssey without ever writing them down. Their research puts them at the center of ethnic strife in the Balkans and, mistaken for foreign spies, they are placed under surveillance. Research and intrigue proceed apace, until a Serbian monk plots a violent end to their project. A work of inventive genius, The File On H is also a profound and eloquent comment on one of the most intractable conflicts of our time. A funny, satirical tale of two American innocents abroad in search of Homer in modern Albania. A political comedy on two American academics who are recording story-singers in Albania. The two are on a project to show that story-singers were the source of Homer's epics, but this is much too highbrow for the district governor, convinced the pair are spies. By an Albanian writer, author of The Concert