Samarkand (novel)

1988 novel by Amin Maalouf

Samarkand

Book cover

Author| Amin Maalouf
Original title| Samarcande
Translator| Russell Harris
Language| French
Publisher| J.C. Lattès

Publication date

| 1988
Publication place| France
Lebanon

Published in English

| 1994
Pages| 276
ISBN| 2-7242-4133-9

Samarkand (French: Samarcande), written by French-Lebanese writer Amin Maalouf, is a 1988 historical fiction novel that revolves around the 11th-century Persian poet Omar Khayyám and his poetry collection Rubaiyat. The novel received the Prix Maison de la Presse.[1]

## Plot

[edit]

The first half of the story is set in Persia (present-day Iran) and Central Asia in the 11th century, and revolves around the scientist, philosopher, and poet Omar Khayyám. It recounts the creation of his Rubaiyat throughout the history of the Seljuk Empire, his interactions with historical figures such as Vizir Nizam al-Mulk and Hassan al-Sabbah of the Order of the Assassins, and his love affair with a female poet of the Samarkand court.

The second half of the story documents the efforts of a fictional American named Benjamin Omar Lesage to obtain the (fictional) original copy of the Rubaiyat, witnessing Persian history throughout the Persian Constitutional Revolution of 1905-1907, only to lose this manuscript in the sinking of the RMS Titanic.

## Reception

[edit]

Ahmed Rashid reviewed the book for The Independent, and wrote:[2]

> Maalouf has written an extraordinary book, describing the lives and times of people who have never appeared in fiction before and are unlikely to do so again. The book is far more than a simple historical novel; like the intricate embroidery of an oriental carpet it weaves back and forth through the centuries, linking the poetry, philosophy and passion of the Sufi past with modernism.

## See also

[edit]

* 1988 in literature
* 20th-century French literature
* Malik-Shah I
* Alp Arslan

## References

[edit]

1. ^ "Prix Maison de la Presse: Historique depuis 1970" (PDF). sndp.fr (in French). Syndicat National des Dépositaires de Presse. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2016-03-04. Retrieved 2011-11-10.
2. ^ Rashid, Ahmed (1992-09-22). "Poetry lovers tricked by a drowned manuscript: Samarkand". The Independent. Retrieved 2011-11-09.

* v
* t
* e

Amin Maalouf

Novels|

* Leo Africanus (1986)
* Samarkand (1988)
* The Gardens of Light (1991)
* The First Century after Beatrice (1992)
* The Rock of Tanios (1993)
* Ports of Call (1996)
* Balthasar's Odyssey (2000)
* On the Isle of Antioch (2020)

Non-fiction|

* The Crusades Through Arab Eyes (1983)
* In the Name of Identity (1998)
* Adrift: How Our World Lost Its Way (2019)

Librettos|

* L'Amour de loin (2000)
* Adriana Mater (2006)
* La Passion de Simone (2006)
* Émilie (2010)

This article about a historical novel of the 1980s is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it.

See guidelines for writing about novels. Further suggestions might be found on the article's talk page.

|

* v
* t
* e

*[v]: View this template
*[t]: Discuss this template
*[e]: Edit this template