- Taschenbuch: 784 Seiten
- Verlag: Dell; Auflage: Reprint (6. März 2001)
- Sprache: Englisch
- ISBN-10: 0440236681
- ISBN-13: 978-0440236689
- Größe und/oder Gewicht: 10,6 x 4 x 17,8 cm
- Durchschnittliche Kundenbewertung: 4.2 von 5 Sternen Alle Rezensionen anzeigen (31 Kundenrezensionen)
- Amazon Bestseller-Rang: Nr. 196.012 in Englische Bücher (Siehe Top 100 in Englische Bücher)
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Produktbeschreibungen
Amazon.com
What a find! David Ball's first novel packs the wallop of a good old-fashioned adventure movie, with historic sweep to please any James Michener fan. The action starts with a wounded wild boar's attack on two French boys (convincingly told from the points of view of the boar, the boys--Paul and Moussa--the terrified mom, and an evil bishop who watches and prevents his coachman from shooting the beast). The pace never slackens as the scenes flash past: invasion and class war in the streets and underground quarryways of Paris during the 1870 siege, moonlit sneak attacks in the desert the Arabs call "the Land of Thirst and Fear," and an epic French attempt to drive a railroad through the Sahara--a mad plan opposed by the dunes and their no less implacable inhabitants, the Tuareg.
The Tuareg are the coolest--they're known as the blue men because they wear head-to-toe wraparound indigo-dyed clothes that scarily obscure their faces and stain their skin. Their rivals call them blue devils, and they have lots of rivals. Even though their dads are brothers, the French boys are fated to fight as tribal rivals in Saharan nomad's land because Moussa has a Tuareg mother. His dad, Count Henri deVries, crash-landed his balloon at her feet, and she followed him back to Paris. Racial oppression and bad bishop behavior provoke justifiable homicide at the Paris Opera, occasioning a hairsbreadth balloon escape and southern adventures too numerous to enumerate here. The prose is purple but handsome, the plot pulpy and propulsive. Check out these sentences: "He fell to her from the sky"; "Bashaga's howl haunted them until it was swallowed by the wind"; "As Moussa's stabbing knife pushed up through to his brain, Abdul ben Henna's last thoughts were of revenge." If these make you burn to read on, read on! You won't be disappointed. --Tim Appelo -- Dieser Text bezieht sich auf eine vergriffene oder nicht verfügbare Ausgabe dieses Titels.
From Booklist
History roars to life in this vibrant tapestry of family bonds, personal honor, and duty. As Paris falls under siege of the Prussian army in 1870, young cousins Paul and Moussa DeVries realize even the Prussians aren't enough to keep them from having to go to school. Paul, the son of Jules DeVries, a French officer, and his wife, Elisabeth, plays at being a soldier like his father and fits in well with his classmates. Moussa, heir to Count Henri DeVries and his wife, Serena, a noblewoman of the Hoggar Tuareg of the Sahara, dreads school because his teacher, a nun, is determined to make him into a God-fearing Christian instead of a heathen wastrel. The cousins' parallel but very different worlds of school and play ultimately serve as microcosms that foreshadow their futures. As the story unfolds, Ball relates the terrible events that lead to the cousins being separated for more than a decade only to meet again at gunpoint in the harsh Saharan sands. In that final encounter, they stand on blood-spattered ground on opposing sides in a tangled conflict--Paul in the uniform of France and Moussa attired in the blue veil and dress of the Tuareg. As they face each other garbed as enemies but family still, conspirators plot behind their backs to ensure their deaths for the sake of the estate and title of the DeVries' holdings. Ball's magnificent historical panorama is sure to be in high demand. Melanie Duncan
-- Dieser Text bezieht sich auf eine vergriffene oder nicht verfügbare Ausgabe dieses Titels.
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Einleitungssatz
THE CHILDREN! HOLD FIRE!" Lesen Sie die erste Seite
Buchdeckel | Copyright | Auszug
THE CHILDREN! HOLD FIRE!" Lesen Sie die erste Seite
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Kundenrezensionen
Die hilfreichsten Kundenrezensionen
Format:Gebundene Ausgabe
The year is 1870; Paris is under siege by the Prussian army. Empires of Sand takes you thru what was a very good relationship between two cousins who are the best of friends. They played together in the tunnels of Paris as the war raged above their heads on the streets. As Paul and Moussa get older they become separated by tragic events in both of their lives. They will meet again on the battlefield of the Sahara -- Moussa as aTurleg, a race of veiled warriors who live and die by the sword and a harsh desert code. And Paul as part of the Expeditionary Force. As you will learn, the two were destined to become the bitterest of enemies because of their mother's backgrounds and feelings for each other.
A great read for those who love historical fiction! This is the first book by this author. I know he will be around for a long time to come.
Format:Gebundene Ausgabe
"Empires of Sand" is a panoramic tale of two worlds in which the best of times and the worst of times are parallel, where every loyalty begets a treachery and every intimacy foreshadows a great divide.
As two friends now confront the ghosts of their intermingled pasts as they struggle with the true meaning of integrity and loyalty. In this sweeping yet precise epic, Ball has created a swashbuckler for urbane readers. Ball's voice recalls, by turns, Michener and Clavell, Sir Richard Burton, and even Alexander Dumas. As a narrative, "Empires of Sand" is part "Beau Geste," part "A Tale of Two Cities."
He blends actual historic events and details with his engaging fiction. And it's not just *what* he says, but *how* he says it. His storytelling style is literate and graceful, erudite but adventurous.
Format:Gebundene Ausgabe
As a history major, this book was a pleasant surprise. David Ball presents a novel complete with powerful characters and gripping action. If you enjoyed, "The Pilliars of The Earth" by Ken Follett, this book is for you!
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Die neuesten Kundenrezensionen
Good, but no Dumas
This novel is highly entertaining and enthralling. For adventures through the nineteenth century Sahara and France, one cannot go wrong with Empires of Sand. Lesen Sie weiter...
Veröffentlicht am 22. März 2000 von Prauge Traveler
Empires of sand
Excellent book. Very good reading. I could hardly put it down once I started. I greatly anticipate his next novel.
Veröffentlicht am 24. Februar 2000 von Lisa Carpentier
A Wonderful Book
Rarely do I stray from the ranks of the mystery/thriller genre, unless it is one of those great epic adventure stories like The Far Pavillions, some of Mitchner's books, the Clan... Lesen Sie weiter...
Am 26. Januar 2000 veröffentlicht
one more reader in the "loved this book" camp
It's interesting that this novel has received such widely differing reader reviews! I found the main characters well drawn and compelling, the narrative pace impressive... Lesen Sie weiter...
Am 23. Januar 2000 veröffentlicht
Promising, But Ultimately Disappointing
It was with great anitcipation I picked up David Ball's "Empires Of Sand." Having just finished Toni Morrison's multilayered, complex work "Beloved," I needed... Lesen Sie weiter...
Veröffentlicht am 14. Januar 2000 von michael t hearn
A Great Read!
I loved the characters, the setting(s), the whole great adventure. It starts with a bang and never stops....A very good book that I know I will read several more times in my life. Lesen Sie weiter...
Veröffentlicht am 4. Januar 2000 von Tim Furlong
Bad but great
Everything you read in the other reviews about cliches, stereotypes, and a hoaky storyline is true. Believe me. The first three chapters are horrible. Lesen Sie weiter...
Am 7. Dezember 1999 veröffentlicht
What a storyteller
I loved this book and just happened to pick it up upon the advice of my brilliant librarian. It was the kind of book I couldn't put down, yet hated to finish. Lesen Sie weiter...
Veröffentlicht am 31. Oktober 1999 von ML
Truly loved this book
It was a personal tragedy for me when this book ended -- I loved it. It is so international in scope, and the history is all new to me. Lesen Sie weiter...
Veröffentlicht am 30. Oktober 1999 von ML
The best book I've read in years!
Hearfelt as well as adventurous, I couldn't put it down!
Am 27. Oktober 1999 veröffentlicht
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