In store now! Civilisations by Laurent Binet, translated by Sam Taylor
An epic expansive novel by the fantastic Laurent Binet, who uses an alternative history to explore colonialism and empire.
Order your copy today directly through October Books or buy online through our bookshop.org store and we’ll get a commission on your purchase.
Civilisations by Laurent Binet, translated by Sam Taylor
Hardback RRP £16.99
A stunningly ambitious and entertaining novel that gives us a counter-factual history of the modern world, from the author of the international bestseller HHhH .
c.1000AD: Erik the Red's daughter heads south from Greenland
1492: Columbus does not discover America
1531: the Incas invade Europe
Freydis is the leader of a band of Viking warriors who get as far as Panama. Nobody knows what became of them...
Five hundred years later, Christopher Columbus is sailing for the Americas, dreaming of gold and conquest. Even when captured by Incas, his faith in his superiority and his mission is unshaken.
Thirty years after that, Atahualpa, the last Inca emperor, arrives in Europe. What does he find? The Spanish Inquisition, the Reformation, capitalism, the miracle of the printing press, endless warmongering between the ruling monarchies, and constant threat from the Turks.
But most of all, downtrodden populations ready for revolution. Fortunately, he has a recent guidebook to acquiring power - Machiavelli's The Prince . It turns out he is very good at it. So, the stage is set for a Europe ruled by Incas and, when the Aztecs arrive on the scene, for a great war that will change history forever.
Civilisations is a wildly entertaining counterfactual story about the modern world, colonisation, empire-building and the eternal human quest for domination. It is an electrifying novel by one of Europe's most exciting writers.
Order your copy today directly from October Books or buy online through our bookshop.org store and we’ll get commission on your purchase.
We’ll be closed this Monday 3rd May for the May Day Bank Holiday!
Then we’ll be back to our our normal open hours of:
Monday - Saturday
10am - 4pm
We are back open six days a week, with the whole store open for browsing. We will still of course be taking customer orders and you will still be able to buy food and cleaning products online through our online store.
We are able to be open 6 days a week again because of your consideration and care whilst in the shop. Keep doing what you’re doing and leave that extra space, sanitise those hands and pull on that mask. We know you’re smiling underneath it :)
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