Utz

Bruce Chatwin

From Shelf: The Booker Prize 1988 Shortlist

Bruce Chatwin's bestselling novel traces the fortunes of the enigmatic and unconventional hero, Kaspar Utz.

As Seen on BBC Between the CoversThis is Chatwin's unforgettable novel of a man in war-torn Communist Prague, driven to protect his collection of porcelain figurines at any cost.Bruce Chatwin's bestselling novel traces the fortunes of the enigmatic and unconventional hero, Kaspar Utz. Despite the restrictions of Cold War Czechoslovakia, Utz asserts his individuality through his devotion to his precious collection of Meissen porcelain. Although Utz is permitted to leave the country each year, and considers defecting each time, he is not allowed to take his porcelain with him and so he always returns to his Czech home, a prisoner both of the Communist state and of his collection.'Chatwin at his most erudite and evocative' New York Times'His final tour de force... a pristine miniature' IndependentSHORTLISTED FOR THE BOOKER PRIZE