The People's Act of Love

James Meek

Aug 2006 · Text Publishing

About this ebook

In the outer reaches of a country recently torn apart by civil war lives a small Christian sect and its enigmatic leader, Balashov. Stationed nearby is a regiment of Czech soldiers, desperate to get home but on the losing side of the recent conflict. Uncertainty prevails.

Into this isolated community trudges Samarin, an escapee from Russia's northernmost gulag. Immediately apprehended, he is brought before Captain Matula, the regiment's megalomaniac commander. But the stranger's arrival has also caught the attention of others. One of them is Anna, the beautiful young war widow. And when the local shaman lies dead, suspicion and terror engulf the little town . . .

Meek's novel is a breathtaking contemporary fable staged against one of the most remote landscapes on earth. The remarkable cast of characters, and Meek's ability to evoke the period, bring to mind the work of the great Russian masters.

The People's Act of Love is a magnificent piece of storytelling, an unforgettable novel and a deeply satisfying read.

About the author

James Meek was born in London in 1962. He now lives in London where he writes for the Guardian, the London Review of Books and Granta. Meek’s acclaimed novel, The People’s Act of Love, won the Royal Society of Literature Ondaatje Prize in 2006.