The Traitor's Niche
Publisher: Vintage Digital
Published: 19 Jan 2017
Place of publication: London
Language: eng
Translated from: alb
Format: EBook
Number of pages: 208
ISBN-13: 9781448191512
Copyright date: 1984
Description: LONGLISTED FOR THE 2017 MAN BOOKER INTERNATIONAL PRIZE

At the heart of the Ottoman Empire, in the main square of Constantinople, a niche is carved into ancient stone. Here, the sultan displays the severed heads of his adversaries. People flock to see the latest head and gossip about the state of the empire: the province of Albania is demanding independence again, and the niche awaits a new trophy…

Tundj Hata, the imperial courier, is charged with transporting heads to the capital – a task he relishes and performs with fervour. But as he travels through obscure and impoverished territories, he makes money from illicit side-shows, offering villagers the spectacle of death. The head of the rebellious Albanian governor would fetch a very high price.

The Traitor’s Niche is a surreal tale of rebellion and tyranny, in a land where armies carry scarecrows, state officials ban entire languages, and the act of forgetting is more complicated than remembering.
Table of contents: title: 1: At the Centre of the Empire; title: 2: On the Empire’s Frontier; title: 3: Between the Frontier and the Centre of the Empire; title: 4: The Centre of the Empire. Cloudy Day; title: 5: The Frontier of the Empire. Cloudy Day; title: 6: Still on the Frontier; title: 7: Neither Frontier Nor Centre, Caw-Caw. Then the Centre and the End