Fantasy
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Victory City: A Novel
The epic tale of a woman who breathes a fantastical empire into existence, only to be consumed by it over the centuries-from the transcendent imagination of Booker Prize–winning, internationally bestselling author Salman Rushdie
"A major accomplishment by one of our greatest living writers . . . It does not resemble any other novel I could name."-Michael Cunningham, Pulitzer Prize–winning author of The Hours
ONE OF THE MOST ANTICIPATED BOOKS OF 2023: Time, The Washington Post, The Guardian, USA Today, The Tampa Bay Times, The Week, CNBC, Business Insider, Kirkus Reviews
In the wake of an unimportant battle between two long-forgotten kingdoms in fourteenth-century southern India, a nine-year-old girl has a divine encounter that will change the course of history. After witnessing the death of her mother, the grief-stricken Pampa Kampana becomes a vessel for her namesake, the goddess Pampa, who begins to speak out of the girl's mouth. Granting her powers beyond Pampa Kampana's comprehension, the goddess tells her that she will be instrumental in the rise of a great city called Bisnaga-"victory city"-the wonder of the world.
Over the next 250 years, Pampa Kampana's life becomes deeply interwoven with Bisnaga's, from its literal sowing from a bag of magic seeds to its tragic ruination in the most human of ways: the hubris of those in power. Whispering Bisnaga and its citizens into existence, Pampa Kampana attempts to make good on the task that the goddess set for her: to give women equal agency in a patriarchal world. But all stories have a way of getting away from their creator, and Bisnaga is no exception. As years pass, rulers come and go, battles are won and lost, and allegiances shift, the very fabric of Bisnaga becomes an ever more complex tapestry-with Pampa Kampana at its center.
Brilliantly styled as a translation of an ancient epic, Victory City is a saga of love, adventure, and myth that is in itself a testament to the power of storytelling.
"A major accomplishment by one of our greatest living writers . . . It does not resemble any other novel I could name."-Michael Cunningham, Pulitzer Prize–winning author of The Hours
ONE OF THE MOST ANTICIPATED BOOKS OF 2023: Time, The Washington Post, The Guardian, USA Today, The Tampa Bay Times, The Week, CNBC, Business Insider, Kirkus Reviews
In the wake of an unimportant battle between two long-forgotten kingdoms in fourteenth-century southern India, a nine-year-old girl has a divine encounter that will change the course of history. After witnessing the death of her mother, the grief-stricken Pampa Kampana becomes a vessel for her namesake, the goddess Pampa, who begins to speak out of the girl's mouth. Granting her powers beyond Pampa Kampana's comprehension, the goddess tells her that she will be instrumental in the rise of a great city called Bisnaga-"victory city"-the wonder of the world.
Over the next 250 years, Pampa Kampana's life becomes deeply interwoven with Bisnaga's, from its literal sowing from a bag of magic seeds to its tragic ruination in the most human of ways: the hubris of those in power. Whispering Bisnaga and its citizens into existence, Pampa Kampana attempts to make good on the task that the goddess set for her: to give women equal agency in a patriarchal world. But all stories have a way of getting away from their creator, and Bisnaga is no exception. As years pass, rulers come and go, battles are won and lost, and allegiances shift, the very fabric of Bisnaga becomes an ever more complex tapestry-with Pampa Kampana at its center.
Brilliantly styled as a translation of an ancient epic, Victory City is a saga of love, adventure, and myth that is in itself a testament to the power of storytelling.
Editorial Reviews
"[An] awe-inspiring saga that looks at what it's really like to be the center of the universe."-Time (one of the most anticipated books of 2023)
"It's splendid that Salman Rushdie has a new novel out. . . . Better still, it's a cracker. Purportedly a rediscovered ancient epic, it's about the transformative power of human creativity, the enduring ability of art to shape the world."-The Guardian (fiction to look out for in 2023)
"Rushdie has already proven himself of his generation's most adept literary stars, and his forthcoming epic fantasy novel promises to be one of the best releases of the year."-The Week (one of the must-read books in early 2023)
"Rushdie is one of our greatest living writers, and his new novel looks frankly amazing. . . . Victory City promises literary fantasy of the highest order."-Goodreads (one of readers' most anticipated books of 2023)
"Salman Rushdie has created a radiant myth about mythmaking. Victory City is a book that privileges the ethical imagination and the unmistakable permanence of storytelling. Within these pages, you will find global travelers, rapacious kings, cave dwellers, prophets of doom, and, at its fierce and eloquent heart, a storyteller who reminds us that death may take away a lot of things, but never the power of our words. Beyond war, beyond violence, even beyond life itself, the story, and the storyteller, last."-Colum McCann
"Victory City is vast and deep, soaring and scintillating. Every page is magical, every page is gorgeous. In the way of a significant work of art, it does not resemble any other novel I could name . . . A major accomplishment by one of our greatest living writers."-Michael Cunningham
"Salman Rushdie is a genius and I wish he could read me a story-or a chapter of his book-every night before bed. The scale and scope of his intellect and his imagination is googolplex, as big as infinity and then some. In Victory City, he spins an epic tale that brings us back to the key...
"It's splendid that Salman Rushdie has a new novel out. . . . Better still, it's a cracker. Purportedly a rediscovered ancient epic, it's about the transformative power of human creativity, the enduring ability of art to shape the world."-The Guardian (fiction to look out for in 2023)
"Rushdie has already proven himself of his generation's most adept literary stars, and his forthcoming epic fantasy novel promises to be one of the best releases of the year."-The Week (one of the must-read books in early 2023)
"Rushdie is one of our greatest living writers, and his new novel looks frankly amazing. . . . Victory City promises literary fantasy of the highest order."-Goodreads (one of readers' most anticipated books of 2023)
"Salman Rushdie has created a radiant myth about mythmaking. Victory City is a book that privileges the ethical imagination and the unmistakable permanence of storytelling. Within these pages, you will find global travelers, rapacious kings, cave dwellers, prophets of doom, and, at its fierce and eloquent heart, a storyteller who reminds us that death may take away a lot of things, but never the power of our words. Beyond war, beyond violence, even beyond life itself, the story, and the storyteller, last."-Colum McCann
"Victory City is vast and deep, soaring and scintillating. Every page is magical, every page is gorgeous. In the way of a significant work of art, it does not resemble any other novel I could name . . . A major accomplishment by one of our greatest living writers."-Michael Cunningham
"Salman Rushdie is a genius and I wish he could read me a story-or a chapter of his book-every night before bed. The scale and scope of his intellect and his imagination is googolplex, as big as infinity and then some. In Victory City, he spins an epic tale that brings us back to the key...
