William Golding

Lose yourself in an epic naval journey in the second novel in the Booker Prize-winning historical fiction Sea Trilogy by the author of Lord of the Flies. This tropical nowhere was the whole world - the whole imaginable world. A decrepit warship is becalmed halfway to Australia, stilled in an ocean wilderness of heat and sea mists. In this surreal, fête-like atmosphere, a ball is held with a passing ship: the passengers dance and flirt, while beneath them seaweed like green hair spreads omniously over the hull. Half-mad with fear, drink, love and opium, both vessel and passengers feel themselves going to pieces: and the very planks seem to twist themselves alive as the ship comes apart at the seams . . . 'Fantastic ... Gems tumble off the pages ... A strong sense of drama ... Much of the pleasure of reading his work is his original imagery.' Annie Proulx 'No living writer has represented the fragility of man's experience so marvellously as Golding.' AS Byatt 'It is in Golding's magnificent, therapeutic, terrifying descriptions of seascapes that the deepest meanings can be found.' Kate Mosse 'Stunning . . . As exciting as any thriller.' Sunday Times 'A feat of imaginative reconstruction, as vivid as a dream.' Daily Mail 'Tells an utterly absorbing tale, in language of immense force and subtlety.' Financial Times To The Ends of the Earth: A Sea Trilogy - Book Two

Winner of the James Tait Black Memorial Prize *Darkness Visible* opens at the height of the London Blitz, when a naked child steps out of an all-consuming fire. Miraculously saved but hideously scarred, soon tormented at school and at work, Matty becomes a wanderer, a seeker after some unknown redemption. Two more lost children await him, twins as exquisite as they are loveless. Toni dabbles in political violence; Sophy, in sexual tyranny. As Golding weaves their destinies together, his book reveals both the inner and outer darkness of our time.

The destinies of three mysterious lost children entwine in this James Tait Black Memorial Prize-winning fable by the radical Nobel Laureate and author of Lord of the Flies . A figure had condensed out of the shuddering backdrop of the glare. He is born in fire: a naked child in the blood-red flames of London's Blitz. Miraculously saved but grotesquely burned, this mysterious orphan is named Matty. Doomed to a life of torment, he becomes a wanderer, a spiritual seeker after unknown redemption. They are also lost children: neglected twins, as exquisitely beautiful as they are loveless and sinful. Toni explores political terrorism; Sophy, sexual dominance and violent criminality. But their destinies will soon collide in an apocalyptic climax - one that illuminates the inner and outer darkness of modern humanity. 'Exceptional ... Irresistibly transcendent ... Golding seduces us. He transfixes, bewitches and confounds us.' Nicola Barker 'Extraordinary ... A hallucinatory, incantatory force ... The most powerful, and strangest, of all Golding's novels, and one of the great masterpieces of the twentieth-century English novel.' Philip Hensher 'A master craftsman in his particular sort of magic ... Golding's best book ... Wonderfully creepy ... A remarkable achievement.' London Review of Books 'A vision of elemental reality so vivid we seem to hallucinate the scenes ... Magic.' New York Times Book Review 'An intensity of vision without parallel.' TLS 'One of the most moving books I've ever read.' The Times 'Brilliantly spooky ... Written with great insight and a surprising humour, it is a thorough pleasure.' Atlantic Monthly

Introduced by Kate Mosse, lose yourself in an epic naval journey in the final novel in the Booker Prize-winning historical fiction Sea Trilogy by the author of Lord of the Flies. I think there has been death in my hands. On the last stretch of its epic voyage from England to Australia, a disintegrating warship inches towards land. But there are still trials ahead, as the vessel is smashed against an ice cliff and blasted by a great storm, while the claustrophobic passengers battle erotic desires, masculine rivalry and violent power struggles - all experiencing a sea change in their natures. And when an unseen fire begins to smoulder below decks, the other side of the world has never seemed further away ... 'Fantastic ... Gems tumble off the pages ... A strong sense of drama ... Much of the pleasure of reading his work is his original imagery.' Annie Proulx 'A truly noble achievement'. Patrick O'Brien 'The best novel I've read this year ... The language fizzes and spits.' Daily Telegraph 'Reeks and resounds with authenticity ... The epic imaginative enterprise [is] as formidable a feat as the year-long odyssey it charts.' Sunday Times 'Golding writes the past as present [with] uncanny skill and tremendous intuition.' Ben Okri To The Ends of the Earth: A Sea Trilogy - Book Three

Sammy Mountjoy, artist, rises from poverty and an obscure birth to see his pictures hung in the Tate Gallery. Swept into World War Two, he is taken as a prisoner-of-war, threatened with torture, then locked in a cell of total darkness to wait. He emerges from his cell transfigured from his ordeal, and begins to realise what man can be and what he has gradually made of himself through his own choices. But did those accumulated choices also begin to deprive him of his free will.

Der Weltklassiker des Nobelpreisträgers Willam Golding in neuer Übersetzung William Goldings erster und erfolgreichster Roman beschreibt das Ende der Unschuld und ist eine dunkle Parabel auf die verborgene Barbarei zivilisierter Gesellschaften. Der Klassiker wirft Fragen nach der Natur des Menschen und dem Pathologischen der Gesellschaft auf, die heute so relevant sind wie 1954, als der Roman erstmals erschien. Ein Abenteuerroman, der zum höllischen Inferno mutiert; einfach und spannend erzählt, nun in moderner Übersetzung von Peter Torberg. Ein Flugzeugabsturz über einer unbewohnten Insel im Pazifischen Ozean. Kein Erwachsener überlebt, eine Gruppe englischer Schüler bleibt sich selbst überlassen. Ralph, der zum Anführer gewählt wird, will das Zusammenleben organisieren, aber die Führungsrolle wird ihm von Jack streitig gemacht. Zunächst erscheint der Verlust der Zivilisation leicht zu bewältigen: Auf der Insel gibt es Wasser, Früchte, sogar wilde Schweine. Es werden Hütten gebaut, die Insel wird erforscht und ein Signalfeuer eingerichtet. Aber bald machen sich Terror und primitive Barbarei breit. Die Schweinejagd artet zu blutigem Schlachten aus, der Machtrausch gipfelt in der Bereitschaft zum Mord. Aggression, Gewalt, der Verlust aller Hemmungen machen aus dem Paradies bald ein mörderisches Inferno. Ein Kampf um Leben und Tod, geführt von ganz gewöhnlichen Jungen, die in der Wildnis zu menschlichen Bestien werden. Oder ist es das wahre Gesicht des Menschen, das hier zum Vorschein kommt? William Goldings Meisterwerk ›Herr der Fliegen‹ ist ein Klassiker der Weltliteratur und begeistert Generationen von Lesern immer wieder von neuem.

<p>Introduced by Annie Proulx, l ose yourself in an epic naval journey in this Booker Prize-winning novel: the first in the acclaimed Sea Trilogy by the author of Lord of the Flies. I grow a little crazy, I think, like all men at sea who live too close to each other and too close thereby to all that is monstrous under the sun and moon . . . Edmund Talbot is sailing to Australia in the early nineteenth century. In his journal, he records mounting tensions aboard the ancient, stinking warship, as officers, sailors, soldiers and emigrants jostle in the cramped darkness below decks. But when something happens to Reverend Colley that brings him into a 'hell of self-degradation', it seems that shame is a force deadlier than the sea itself . . . 'It is the emotional veracity of life at sea that powers Golding's exceptional writing ... The fury, mystery and challenge of life on board .' Kate Mosse 'Golding writes the past as present [with] uncanny skill and tremendous intuition.' Ben Okri 'A master at the full stretch of his age and wisdom - necessary, provoking, urgent, rich, complex and rare.' The Times 'Golding's best and most accessible story since Lord of the Flies .' Melvyn Bragg 'An extraordinary novel.' Observer To The Ends of the Earth: A Sea Trilogy - Book One</p> <p>The first volume of William Golding's Sea Trilogy.</p><p></p><p>Sailing to Australia in the early years of the nineteenth century, Edmund Talbot keeps a journal to amuse his godfather back in England. Full of wit and disdain, he records the mounting tensions on the ancient, sinking warship where officers, sailors, soldiers and emigrants jostle in the cramped spaces below decks. Then a single passenger, the obsequious Reverend Colley, attracts the animosity of the sailors, and in the seclusion of the fo'castle something happens to bring him into a 'hell of degradation', where shame is a force deadlier than the sea itself.</p><p></p><p>'The work of a master at the full stretch of his age and wisdom - necessary, provoking, urgent, rich, complex and rare.' <i>The Times</i></p><p></p><p>'An extraordinary novel.' <i>Observer</i></p><p><i></i></p><p>'Golding's best and most accessible story since <i>Lord of the Flies</i>.' Melvyn Bragg</p> <p>The first volume of William Golding's Sea Trilogy.</p><p></p><p>Sailing to Australia in the early years of the nineteenth century, Edmund Talbot keeps a journal to amuse his godfather back in England. Full of wit and disdain, he records the mounting tensions on the ancient, sinking warship where officers, sailors, soldiers and emigrants jostle in the cramped spaces below decks. Then a single passenger, the obsequious Reverend Colley, attracts the animosity of the sailors, and in the seclusion of the fo'castle something happens to bring him into a 'hell of degradation', where shame is a force deadlier than the sea itself.</p><p></p><p>'The work of a master at the full stretch of his age and wisdom - necessary, provoking, urgent, rich, complex and rare.' <i>The Times</i></p><p></p><p>'An extraordinary novel.' <i>Observer</i></p><p><i></i></p><p>'Golding's best and most accessible story since <i>Lord of the Flies</i>.' Melvyn Bragg</p> <div><p class="description"> </p><p>"An ancient ship of the line converted to general purposes is making her way from the South of England to Australia. She carries a few guns, some cargo, some animals, some seamen, some soldiers, some emigrants and a few ladies and gentlemen. There is a clergyman of the Church of England. There is Wilmot Brocklebank, lithographer, marine artist and portrait painter. There is a young army officer. </p> <p>"Representing the higher echelons of administration is young Mr Talbot, setting out with the utmost confidence towards a distinguished career. But the voyage teaches him some unexpected things. It affords him more opportunities for observing the ceremonies that mark a progres through life - more chances for a mixture of acute observation and sheer misjudgement - than he could possibly record in his journal; though, for his godfather's entertainment, he tries his best. Though Talbot is mistaken in Deverel, instructed by Mr Summers, seduced by Miss Brocklebank, and shocked by Miss Granham, he finds it unnecessary in the event to keep an eye on Mr Prettiman. But it is a sadder and more responsible man who learns from the Reverend Robert James Colley what a bitter taste there is to remorse when it is unavailing. </p></div> EDITORIAL REVIEW: Now reissued with a new jacket the first volume of Golding's sea trilogy, which follows the trials and fortunes of a warship captain bound for Australia. Whilst at sea he writes a journal to send back to England in which he records the mounting tensions onboard ship. From the author of LORD OF THE FLIES. <div><p class="description"> </p><p>"An ancient ship of the line converted to general purposes is making her way from the South of England to Australia. She carries a few guns, some cargo, some animals, some seamen, some soldiers, some emigrants and a few ladies and gentlemen. There is a clergyman of the Church of England. There is Wilmot Brocklebank, lithographer, marine artist and portrait painter. There is a young army officer. </p> <p>"Representing the higher echelons of administration is young Mr Talbot, setting out with the utmost confidence towards a distinguished career. But the voyage teaches him some unexpected things. It affords him more opportunities for observing the ceremonies that mark a progres through life - more chances for a mixture of acute observation and sheer misjudgement - than he could possibly record in his journal; though, for his godfather's entertainment, he tries his best. Though Talbot is mistaken in Deverel, instructed by Mr Summers, seduced by Miss Brocklebank, and shocked by Miss Granham, he finds it unnecessary in the event to keep an eye on Mr Prettiman. But it is a sadder and more responsible man who learns from the Reverend Robert James Colley what a bitter taste there is to remorse when it is unavailing. </p></div>

Commissioned by the leading actor Alastair Sim (1900-1976) The Brass Butterfly was Golding's only original stage play. Starring Sim himself, and also the popular actor George Cole, it opened for a provincial pre-West End run in Oxford in early 1958 and premiered at the Strand Theatre in London in April. In his biography of Golding, John Carey describes it as 'a comic scherzo' dealing with the conflict between science and religion, transposed to the Greco-Roman world of antiquity.

With an introduction by Meg Rosoff William Golding's final novel, left in draft at his death, tells the story of a priestess of Apollo. Arieka is one of the last to prophesy at Delphi, in the shadowy years when the Romans were securing their grip on the tribes and cities of Greece. The plain, unloved daughter of a local grandee, she is rescued from the contempt and neglect of her family by her Delphic role. Her ambiguous attitude to the god and her belief in him seem to move in parallel with the decline of the god himself - but things are more complicated than they appear. 'A remarkable work ... A compelling storyteller as well as a clear-eyed philosopher of the dangerous puzzles of being human.' The Times 'A wonderful central character. The story stretches out as clean and dry and clear as the beach in Lord of the Flies.' Independent 'Feline, deadpan and at moments hilarious.' Observer

Hunt, trek, and feast among Neanderthals in this stunning novel by the radical Nobel Laureate and author of Lord of the Flies. This was a different voice; not the voice of the people. It was the voice of other. When spring comes, the people leave their winter cave, foraging for honey, grubs, and the hot richness of a deer's brain. They awaken the fire to heat their naked bodies, lay down their thorn bushes, and share pictures in their minds. But strange things are happening: inexplicable scents and sounds. Unimaginable beasts are half-glimpsed in the forest; upright creatures of bone-faces and deerskins. What the people don't know is that their day is already over ... 'Extraordinary ... Genius ... Remarkable in the literature of the twentieth century.' Ben Okri 'A stun gun to read ... Truly a masterpiece.' Monique Roffey 'An earthquake in the petrified forests of the English novel.' Arthur Koestler 'An astonishing, underrated novel.' Robert MacFarlane 'Beautiful, powerful ... A visionary dream . Shakespearean.' Ted Hughes 'A master fabulist, and a brilliantly creative interpreter of remote history ... An iconoclast.' John Fowles 'A tour de force ... Genius.' Daily Telegraph 'Alarming, eye-opening, desolating, mind-invading and unique.' New Statesman

Lose yourself in ancient civilizations in these three historical novellas by the radical Nobel Laureate and author of Lord of the Flies. Even when he leapt from the parapet he talked. Ancient Egypt. The Prince is set to marry Pretty Flower, his sister, in the Great House's incestuous society. But the Liar speaks a truth that transforms everything . A primitive matriarchal society. While mothers raise children in the bucolic Place of Women, Chimp is tormented by the Leopard Men in their brutal hunts, until he gains new wisdom . Imperial Rome. In an era of invention and exploration, the emperor realises he loves his illegitimate grandson more than his own loutish heir . 'Communicates visionary ideas about the present and his imaginative understanding of our collective pasts.' Bettany Hughes 'Golding writes the past as present [with] uncanny skill and tremendous intuition.' Ben Okri 'Brilliant . So fluent and stylish that the stories read themselves like a dream.' Daily Telegraph 'Ingenious ... Perhaps the ambition of these books seems to put them a bit over the top, a bit out of their time.' London Review of Books

A new one-volume edition of this classic sequence of sea novels set in the early nineteenth century, about a voyage from England to Australia. Rites of Passage (Winner of the Booker Prize) 'The work of a master at the full stretch of his age and wisdom.' The Times Close Quarters 'A feat of imaginative reconstruction, as vivid as a dream.' Daily Mail Fire Down Below 'Laden to the waterline with a rich cargo of practicalities and poetry, pain and hilarity, drama and exaltation.' Sunday Times