Silk

Translated into English from the original Italian by Guido Waldman. 2nd impression. 92pp. Grey/blue cloth-covered boards with gilt titles to spine (tiny white mark on front board). A bright copy with clean and fresh pages. In its original dust jacket (minor bump at base of spine). When an epidemic threatens to obliterate the silk trade in France, a young merchant travels to the other side of the world, Japan, to obtain eggs for the fresh breeding of silk worms. But its the 1860s, and Japan is still closed to foreigner, so his is a clandestine operation. A powerful and moving novel full of Baricco's lyrical prose and fine story-telling.