Enchanted Odysseus

The narrator is a man of fifty-five whose memory lasts only a few days. His neurologist, Dr Krauthaker, has told him that a novice surfer in Bali struck him on the head with a board, leaving him with amnesia. He has been given five invented names and five forged passports, and an urge to obey the command "Continue!" without question, even when it means killing armed rebels in the Philippines to free hostages. He tells his story in emails to chosen recipients, hoping someone will answer. He moves from country to country and could settle into wealth and idleness, but the question of who he is gives him no rest. When he finds his former wife he no longer recognises her, and when she keeps him from their son he begins to doubt what is real and whether he is only a puppet in Krauthaker's hands.

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About the book

Form

Novel

Length

274 pages in the original

First published

2013 by Litera

Author's age

68 when first published

ISBN

9789616780988 (original)

9780692693940 (Texture Press, United States)