Calamities of Exile: Three Nonfiction Novellas

By Lawrence Weschler

Book Overview

From the author of Mr. Wilson's Cabinet of Wonder, Calamities of Exile combines three gripping narratives that afford a sort of double CAT scan into the natures of both modern totalitarianism and timeless exile.

"Beautiful but harrowing chronicles of three exiles that probe the moral and personal risks of their encounters with totalitarianism. . . . Piercing and timely."--Kirkus Reviews, starred review

"Weschler . . . combines a novelist's gift for drama with the objectivity and research skills of a journalist. . . . The result is three gripping profiles of very human but also extraordinary men."--Publishers Weekly

" Weschler's] thorough accounting of the men's covert operations, assumed identities and strained relationships with fathers, wives, and colleagues creates a disturbing triptych of the perils of totalitarianism."--Lance Gould, New York Times Book Review

"Weschler tells these three tragic tales with an admirable combination of psychological penetration, intellectual thrust, concision and compassion."--Francis King, Spectator

"Endlessly absorbing. . . . Breathtaking."--Jeri Laber, Los Angeles Times Book Review

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0226893936
• ISBN13: 9780226893938
• Release Date: May 1996
• Publisher: University of Chicago Press
• Length: 211 Pages
• Weight: 1.15 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.0" x 6.4" x 8.8"

Customer Reviews

A Brilliant Cross-Cultural Look at Totalitarianism

Weschler is a brilliant and amazing storyteller. I had followed his work closely in the New Yorker and other publications. Written like a novel, this book is a fascinating true-life look at three totalitarian regimes through the eyes of exiles who fought dictators in their own ways. The juxtoposition of the threee unrelated experiences provides some interesting insights into what totalitarianism is at its root and how it affects the people who live under its governance.