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Saturday, January 20, 2007

Fireproof

In a word, wow. This is what's on the Picador UK site as well as what's on both the US and UK Amazon sites, but it's not yet published and therefore might not be final.

But if it is the final design: No author name on the front. No title on the front (the title is Fireproof, not "Help Me.") Again: Wow.


What it's about:

February 2002. A helpless nation watches as the city of Ahmedabad in India is rocked by religious violence. Before sunrise the next day, more than a hundred Muslim men, women and children will be killed, most of them burnt alive. Above the smoke and flames, the dead decide to intervene.

So begins Fireproof, Raj Kamal Jha’s mesmerizing new novel, in which the murdered whisper from footnotes and photographs. At the heart of the novel is its narrator Jay – a man who carries with him an unspeakable secret and a newborn baby – and a mystery woman, who writes with her fingers on glass, drawing man and child out of their home and on a journey across the burning city.

Don't know about you, but I love the whole idea of this.

Here's the Guardian review.

8 comments:

Anonymous said...

This is unspeakably gorgeous. I'm buying this for my bookstore simply based on the cover, though the story sounds impressive as well.

Chompers said...

Is the mystery woman an English speaker? Because I feel like that should be some foreign language based on the book description.

I'm not in love with it, but I'm glad to see edgy design instead of some marketing/demographic pandering.

Andy said...

If that cover doesn't get you to pick up the book, I'm not sure what will. Any idea on the publisher/release date? (I'm not sure if Picador operates in the US or if they're an imprint etc. etc.)

AnttiP said...

It makes me really want to know what the cover feels like, that is what materials/effects are used on the physical cover. Not only coated paper(?). Especially in this case I really hope there would be something surprising for the fingertips...

Joseph said...

Andy: several sites give 2/16/07 as the release date.

Siobhan said...

They should just call it Help Me and leave the cover as is.

pinaki said...

look it is already out in india and it just burns out competition. the indian cover although has a bluish tint to it.

pinaki said...

look it is already out in india and it just burns out competition. the indian cover although has a bluish tint to it.