Accused of mocking the inviolate codes of Islam, the Persian poet and sage Omar
Khayyam fortuitously finds sympathy with the very man who is to judge his allege
d crimes. Recognising genuis, the judge decides to spare him and gives him inste
ad a small, blank book, encouraging him to confine his thoughts to it alone. Thu
s beginds the seamless blend of fact and fiction that is Samarkand.
Vividly r
e-creating the history of the manuscript of the Rubaiyaat of Omar Khayyam, Amin
Maalouf spans continents and centuries with breathtaking vision: the dusky exoti
cism of 11th-century Persia, with its poetesses and assassins; the same country'
s struggles nine hundred years later, seen through the eyes of an American acade
mic obsessed with finding the original manuscript; and the fated maiden voyage o
f the Titanic, whose tragedy led to the Rubaiyaat's final resting place - all ar
e brought to life with keen assurance by this gifted and award-winning writer.
