The Last Samurai

Name: The Last Samurai
Brand: Penguin Random House NZ
SKU: 9781784707965
Price: 24.0 NZD
Availability: InStock

By Helen DeWitt

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( 11,147 ratings, 1,620 reviews)

Summary

The Last Samurai by Helen DeWitt is a unique novel that follows the story of Ludo, a child prodigy raised by his single mother, Sibylla. As Ludo grows, he becomes obsessed with identifying his father and uses Akira Kurosawa's film Seven Samurai as a backdrop for his quest for wisdom and guidance. The book beautifully intertwines themes of intellect, independence, and the search for identity.
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Format: Paperback / softback

$24⁰⁰

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~~$26⁰⁰~~

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The Last Samurai

$24⁰⁰

Elsewhere:

~~$26⁰⁰~~

Book Hero Magic created this recommendation. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! IS THIS YOUR NEXT READ?

You might enjoy this book if you're intrigued by the intersection of genius and unconventional parenting, as it offers a unique portrayal of a prodigious child navigating life's challenges with his equally fascinating and resourceful mother. It may appeal to you if you appreciate novels that weave intellect with emotional depth, exploring themes of identity, ambition, and the pursuit of knowledge through an engaging narrative style.

The Last Samurai

‘Fiercely intelligent, very funny and unlike anything else I’ve ever read’ MARK HADDON
'Original...witty...playful…a wonderfully funny book' JAMES WOOD
'A triumph – a genuinely new story, a genuinely new form' A. Let loose on London, Ludo sets out on a secret quest to find the last samurai – the father he never knew.

Originally published in 2000 to international acclaim, The Last Samurai is a paean to the power of language and learning - dazzling, delighting and inspiring a legion of readers

Description

Originally published in 2000 to international acclaim, The Last Samurai is a paean to the power of language and learning—dazzling, delighting, and inspiring a legion of readers.

'Fiercely intelligent, very funny and unlike anything else I've ever read' - MARK HADDON
'Original...witty...playful...a wonderfully funny book' - JAMES WOOD
'A triumph - a genuinely new story, a genuinely new form' - A. S. BYATT

Eleven-year-old Ludo is in search of a father. Raised singlehandedly by his mother Sibylla, Ludo's been reading Greek, Arabic, Japanese, and a little Hebrew since the age of four; but reading Homer in the original whilst riding the Circle Line on the London Underground isn't enough to satisfy the boy's boundless curiosity.

Is he a genius? A real-life child prodigy? He's grown up watching Seven Samurai on a hypnotising loop—his mother's strategy to give him not one but seven male role models. And yet Ludo remains obsessed with the one thing his mother refuses to tell him: his real father's name. Let loose on London, Ludo sets out on a secret quest to find the last samurai—the father he never knew.

Book Hero Magic summarised reviews for this book. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! HOW HAS THIS BEEN REVIEWED?

The Last Samurai by Helen DeWitt has been highly praised for its wit, originality, and intelligence. Reviewers commend its playful exploration of hyperintelligent rationalism and its unique narrative form. The book is often described as both amusing and deeply intellectual, drawing comparisons to the tragicomic tradition of classic authors and showcasing DeWitt's stylistic boldness. Many regard it as a potential modern classic, appealing to both casual readers and those who appreciate deeper literary exploration.

Book Details

INFORMATION

ISBN: 9781784707965

Publisher: Vintage Publishing

Format: Paperback / softback

Date Published: 15 March 2018

Country: United Kingdom

Imprint: Vintage

Audience: General / adult

DIMENSIONS

Spine width: 30.0mm

Width: 127.0mm

Height: 197.0mm

Weight: 343g

Pages: 496

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About the Author

Daughter of an American diplomat, Helen DeWitt was born in a suburb of Washington, D.C. in 1957 and grew up in Latin America. Abandoning a degree at Smith College, she went to Lady Margaret Hall, Oxford, in 1979 to study classics. A Senior Scholarship at Brasenose College enabled her to get a DPhil and discover Sergio Leone, Akira Kurosawa and Mel Brooks. She left academia in 1988 to write a novel; she had 100 unfinished novels on her hard drive when The Last Samurai was published in 2000 to international acclaim. Her second novel, Lightning Rods, was published in 2011 and was shortlisted for the Bollinger Everyman Wodehouse Prize. She has contributed installations to Artists Space in New York and was resident and participant in the Plastic Words series at Raven Row in London. In descending order of proficiency she knows Latin, Ancient Greek, French, German, Spanish, Italian, Portuguese, Dutch, Danish, Norwegian, Swedish, Arabic, Hebrew and Japanese. She is based in Berlin.

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