Primeval and Other Times *BRUISED BOOK*

Each of our "bruised books" are new yet slightly scarred from living their lives - whether during transportation or accidentally dropped. It doesn't mean that the stories within their pages are any less valuable!

The cover has a dent on it.

Buy it at a discounted rate or at full price to support our bookstore!

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For the denizens of mythical Primeval, its fields and forests bounded by two rivers, the world beyond is nothing more than a dream. Yet their stories – or Times – are a microcosm of the tumultuous recent history of the world. The fortunes of the family of Michal the miller, whom conscription carries away in 1914, punctuate nearly a century of war and occupation. The outcast Cornspike raises her daughter among the creatures and spirits of the forest. The squire Popielski loses his faith and becomes obsessed with a game where progress is attained only by dreaming the right kind of dream. Non-human beings – trees and mushrooms and archangels – have their Times too, as do inanimate objects, which may be ‘more important for the world than people’.

Alongside bloodshed and betrayal, the dramas of Primeval’s daily life mark the birth, life and decline of its little world and Time, making us consider afresh the stories that help us comprehend and navigate our own. Rich with the capaciousness and innovation that have brought Olga Tokarczuk to sustained international fame, Primeval and Other Times is an enduring masterpiece by one of Europe’s most inventive novelists.