John Lempriere, un erudito joven de Jersey, acude a Londres en 1788, tras la muerte de su padre, para reclamar su herencia. Obsesionado por la manera en que los mitos clasicos parecen irrumpir en su vida ( su padre, como Acteon, ha muerto destrozado por los perros que guardaban a la virginal hija del noble del lugar mientras se banaba desnuda; una prostituta ha sido asesinada con una lluvia de oro fundido, en una clara referencia a la seduccion de Danae por Zeus), consulta a dos sabios doctores que le aconsejan que escriba un diccionario clasico.Pero la vida del joven John en Londres no sera solo la de un estudioso dedicado a la investigacion y la escritura de su obra. Sometido a la implacable persecucion de los poderosos miembros de la Cabala, un grupo de descendientes de hugonotes, el joven se vera obligado para salvar su vida a desentranar los misterios de la relacion - o mas bien violento contencioso: todos los hombres de la familia Lempriere han muerto asesinados - que une a su familia con el grupo secreto y con la todopoderosa Compania de las Indias Orientales. Vinculos que nos haran retroceder en el tiempo y viajar por el mundo pues se remontan al sitio de La Rechelle, en 1627, escenario de una de las mas sangrientas matanzas que registra la historia.… (más)
P_S_Patrick: These two books have a fair bit in common. Both are dense, demanding, historical, and are thick with intrigue, conspiracy, and foul play. Thrilling stuff.
P_S_Patrick: The common themes between these books include long voyages on ships, the historical disputes between England and Europe, books, intrigue, spying, and conspiracy. So, if you enjoy one, you should enjoy the other. But, what Ex Libris does, Lempriere's Dictionary does better, there is more intrigue, bigger and better conspiracies, a better plot, and overall it is better written. Ex Libris is shorter, and easier going due to its not being as dense, it also focuses more on books, and is set a bit earlier, so may appeal more to some people for these reasons, for example if you struggled with Lempriere's Dictionary.… (más)
KayCliff: Lempriere's Dictionary by Lawrence Norfolk concerns the writing of Lempriere's Classical Dictionary of Proper Names Mentioned in Ancient Authors Writ Large by John Lempriere.
John Lemprière, un erudito joven de Jersey, acude a Londres en 1788, tras la muerte de su padre, para reclamar su herencia. Obsesionado por la manera en que los mitos clásicos parecen irrumpir en su vida (su padre, como Acteón, ha muerto destrozado por los perros que guardaban a la virginal hija del noble del lugar mientras se bañaba desnuda; una prostituta ha sido asesinada con una lluvia de oro fundido, en una clara referencia a la seducción de Dánae por Zeus), consulta a dos sabios doctores que le aconsejan que escriba un diccionario clásico.
Early in Lempriere's Dictionary the hero's father searches for evidence of a phantom ship, and in so doing describes the defining moment of the antiquarian romance. "Somewhere in the morass of receipts, bills, bonds, affidavits and orders of acquisition which lay strewn about the room, there was a pattern. Somewhere within the pages of handwritten accounts, diaries, letters and notes ran a thread. But he could not find it. A single memorandum, a scrawl on a dog-eared endpaper might supply the link, the key to the pattern. It was here, buried here somewhere. Perhaps he had already seen it and missed its significance." Only the predestined hero, typically a studious sort, can find the thread, read correctly the signs and portents of these adult fairy tales.
"Myriad wonders and pleasures abound in Lempriere's Dictionary. Not too surprisingly, Zygia, the last entry in Lempriere's actual classical dictionary, provides just the right hint to the ending of Lawrence Norfolk's superbly entertaining novel."
"Wildly and wonderfully improbable, reveling in the countless allusions that feed its dark vision: a delight for classicists, historians, and any reader eager to be overwhelmed by a story. An exceptional achievement."
The winds blew high over Jersey, clearing the sky for the stars to glimmer down on the island below.
Somewhere in the morass of receipts, bills, bonds, affidavits and orders of acquisition which lay strewn about the room, there was a pattern. Somewhere within the pages of handwritten accounts, diaries, letters and notes ran a thread. But he could not find it. A single memorandum, a scrawl on a dog-eared endpaper might supply the link, the key to the pattern. It was here, buried here somewhere. Perhaps he had already seen it and missed its significance.
What began as a simple list of persons, places and events had grown strangely, with odd nodules and tendrils sprouting in all directions and linking up with each other to form loops and lattices, the whole thing wriggling under his nib like a mess of worms on a pin.... The dictionary had become its own beast ...Reappearances by major and minor characters folded the story back on itself, places recurred, accruing and expending significance, events paralleled one another. It was a serpentine thing, hardly a list at all.
What began as a simple list of persons, places and events had grown strangely, with odd nodules and tendrils sprouting in all directions and linking up with each other to form loops and lattices, the whole thing wriggling under his nib like a mess of worms on a pin.
John Lempriere, un erudito joven de Jersey, acude a Londres en 1788, tras la muerte de su padre, para reclamar su herencia. Obsesionado por la manera en que los mitos clasicos parecen irrumpir en su vida ( su padre, como Acteon, ha muerto destrozado por los perros que guardaban a la virginal hija del noble del lugar mientras se banaba desnuda; una prostituta ha sido asesinada con una lluvia de oro fundido, en una clara referencia a la seduccion de Danae por Zeus), consulta a dos sabios doctores que le aconsejan que escriba un diccionario clasico.Pero la vida del joven John en Londres no sera solo la de un estudioso dedicado a la investigacion y la escritura de su obra. Sometido a la implacable persecucion de los poderosos miembros de la Cabala, un grupo de descendientes de hugonotes, el joven se vera obligado para salvar su vida a desentranar los misterios de la relacion - o mas bien violento contencioso: todos los hombres de la familia Lempriere han muerto asesinados - que une a su familia con el grupo secreto y con la todopoderosa Compania de las Indias Orientales. Vinculos que nos haran retroceder en el tiempo y viajar por el mundo pues se remontan al sitio de La Rechelle, en 1627, escenario de una de las mas sangrientas matanzas que registra la historia.
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