Unity - Couverture souple

Arditti, Michael

Couverture souple

ISBN 10 : 1904559123 ISBN 13 : 9781904559122

Editeur : Arcadia Books, 2005

A propos du livre

Présentation de l'éditeur :

'The most intriguing and thought-provoking novel I have read this year' - Daily Express

'Strikingly original in form ... a remarkable, unsettling book ... a compelling fiction' - The Times

'What is astonishing in Unity is the grim wit and ironic humour which pervades this deadly serious page-turner ... the reader staggers away from this uncompromising drama of ideas shaken and stirred' - Independent

'Chilling in the extremity of its import ... hugely ambitious in its scope, Arditti's novel examines the events and personalities that shape moral character' - Financial Times

'Persuasive, sometimes amusing, sometimes chilling ... a true novel with a strong narrative and acute, sympathetic characterisation' - Scotsman

'This remarkable book ... a strange and engrossing story that has powerful resonances with our own era' - Daily Mail

'The purpose ... is to understand the human appetite for gratuitous cruelty ... the final section ... debates this with a Dostoevskian intentness. The author's love for his creations [is] the only possible antidote to the loveless anti-human behaviour that Unity has been courageous enough to confront' - TLS

'This is a deftly written, deeply intelligent and wholly admirable book, full of good ideas and sharp historical sidelights' - Literary Review

A gripping read packed with intrigue, sex, politics and death. What more could you possibly want?' - Wayne Clews, Attitude

Unity tells the story of a lost film about the relationship between the English aristocrat, Unity Mitford, and Hitler, set against the background of the Red Army Faction terror campaign in 1970s Germany. Shooting has to be abandoned when the leading actress, Felicity Benthall, joins in the campaign, following her affair with a charismatic Palestinian.The author himself features in the narrative when, almost thirty years later, he attempts to uncover the truth about Felicity and another university friend, Luke Dent, who wrote the film-script. He consults Luke's letters from the set and the diaries of the former Hollywood child star and revolutionary socialist, Geraldine Mortimer, who played Diana Mosley; interviews two of the German actors and the film's producer, Thomas Bü cher, an Auschwitz survivor turned high-powered pornographer; reads a revealing memoir by the director's widow; and corresponds with Carole Medhurst, a British actress turned Hollywood mogul. Their testimonies set up an intricate chain of associations from 1930s Britain to post-war Germany, painting a disturbing picture of corruption and fanaticism, and casting light on the nature of evil.

Présentation de l'éditeur :

In his first novel since the best-selling Easter, Michael Arditti explores the personalities and politics involved in the making of a lost 1970s film by a German director about the relationship between Unity Mitford and Hitler. The completion of the film was destroyed by a terrorist outrage, triggered by the growing sympathy of its leading actress for the cause of the Red Army Faction and her admiration of a charismatic Palestinian activist. Arditti himself features in the narrative as, almost thirty years later, he attempts to uncover the truth about two friends who took part in the film. He consults the scriptwriter's letters and the diaries of a Hollywood child star turned crusading socialist. He interviews two of the German actors and the film's producer, an Auschwitz survivor who has become a high-powered pornographer. He reads a revealing family memoir and corresponds with a Hollywood mogul. These testimonies - ranging from 1930s Britain to post-war Germany - are often conflicting and prove to be deeply disturbing. Startlingly original in concept and treatment, Unity is a profound exploration of the nature and consequences of evil.

À propos de cette édition

• Éditeur: Arcadia Books
• Date d'édition: 2005
• ISBN 10: 1904559123
• ISBN 13: 9781904559122
• Reliure: Broché
• Nombre de pages: 384