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Abacus Abacus i(A38799 works by) (Organisation) assertion
Born: Established: London,
c
England,
c
c
United Kingdom (UK),
c
Western Europe, Europe, ;
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Works By

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2 10 y separately published work icon The Secret Chord Geraldine Brooks , London : Abacus , 2016 8702568 2015 single work novel

'With more than two million copies of her novels sold, New York Times bestselling author Geraldine Brooks has achieved both popular and critical acclaim. Now, Brooks takes on one of literature’s richest and most enigmatic figures: a man who shimmers between history and legend. Peeling away the myth to bring David to life in Second Iron Age Israel, Brooks traces the arc of his journey from obscurity to fame, from shepherd to soldier, from hero to traitor, from beloved king to murderous despot and into his remorseful and diminished dotage.

'The Secret Chord provides new context for some of the best-known episodes of David’s life while also focusing on others, even more remarkable and emotionally intense, that have been neglected. We see David through the eyes of those who love him or fear him—from the prophet Natan, voice of his conscience, to his wives Mikal, Avigail, and Batsheva, and finally to Solomon, the late-born son who redeems his Lear-like old age. Brooks has an uncanny ability to hear and transform characters from history, and this beautifully written, unvarnished saga of faith, desire, family, ambition, betrayal, and power will enthrall her many fans.' (Publication summary)
21 22 y separately published work icon Shantaram Gregory David Roberts , London : Abacus , 2004 Z1054069 2003 single work novel

'Shantaram is narrated by Lin, an escaped convict with a false passport who flees maximum security prison in Australia for the teeming streets of a city where he can disappear. Accompanied by his guide and faithful friend, Prabaker, the two enter Bombay's hidden society of beggars and gangsters, prostitutes and holy men, soldiers and actors, and Indians and exiles from other countries, who seek in this remarkable place what they cannot find elsewhere.'

'As a hunted man without a home, family, or identity, Lin searches for love and meaning while running a clinic in one of the city's poorest slums, and serving his apprenticeship in the dark arts of the Bombay mafia. The search leads him to war, prison torture, murder, and a series of enigmatic and bloody betrayals. The keys to unlock the mysteries and intrigues that bind Lin are held by two people. The first is Khader Khan: mafia godfather, criminal-philosopher-saint, and mentor to Lin in the underworld of the Golden City. The second is Karla: elusive, dangerous, and beautiful, whose passions are driven by secrets that torment her and yet give her a terrible power.'

'Burning slums and five-star hotels, romantic love and prison agonies, criminal wars and Bollywood films, spiritual gurus and mujaheddin guerillas - this huge novel has the world of human experience in its reach, and a passionate love for India at its heart.'–BOOK JACKET.
9 7 y separately published work icon Jennifer Government : A Novel Max Barry , London : Abacus , 2004 Z1006030 2003 single work novel humour thriller "In Max Barry's twisted, hilarious vision of the near future, the world is run by giant American corporations (except for a few deluded holdouts like the French); taxes are illegal; employees take the last names of the companies they work for; The Police and The NRA are publicly-traded security firms; the U.S. government may only investigate crimes if they can bill a citizen directly. It's a free market paradise! Hack Nike is a lowly Merchandising Officer who's not very good at negotiating his salary. So when John Nike and John Nike, executives from the promised land of Marketing, offer him a contract, he signs without reading it. Unfortunately, Hack's new contract involves shooting teenagers to build up street cred for Nike's new line of $2,500 sneakers. Scared, Hack goes to The Police, who assume he's asking for a subcontracting deal and lease the assassinations to the NRA. Soon Hack finds himself pursued by Jennifer Government, a tough-talking agent with a barcode tattoo under her eye and a rabid determination to nail John Nike (the boss of the other John Nike). In a world where your job title means everything, the most cherished possession is a platinum credit card, and advertising jingles give way to automatic weapons in the fight for market share, Jennifer Government is the consumer watchdog from hell." - Publisher blurb http://www.loc.gov/ sighted 31/7/07
1 10 y separately published work icon Promised Lands Jane Rogers , London : Abacus , 2000 Z252660 1995 single work novel historical fiction The author combines two parallel narratives which conjoin the past and the present. Royal Marine Lieutenant William Dawes, an idealistic young officer and astronomist, set sail toward Australia in 1788 with dreams of establishing a Utopian society, where the convict settlers on his ship and the Aborigines will learn from each other and live in unity. His modern counterpart, Stephen Beech, a history professor with radical ideas for transforming his school, is researching Dawes's life and the early days of the Botany Bay settlement. As Beech learns the harsh truths about the settlement - the failure of colonialist policies, the ravages of small pox and the degradation of the convicts - he struggles to understand his own failed efforts to implement his Utopian educational theories. Beech's wife Olla rejects her husband's views and creates her own Utopian worldview, in which their apparently handicapped son, Daniel, is in possession of extraordinary powers and is destined to become mankind's savior. (Source: LibrariesAustralia)
2 20 y separately published work icon The Women in Black Madeleine St John , London : Abacus , 1994 Z44943 1993 single work novel 'The Women in Black is a perfect-pitch comedy of manners set in the ladies' cocktail section of F.G. Goode, a department store in 1950s Sydney. The women in black are run off their feet, what with the Christmas rush and the summer sales that follow. But it's Sydney in the 1950s, and there's still just enough time left on a hot and frantic day to dream and scheme. By the time the last marked-down frock has been sold, most of the staff of the Ladies Cocktail section at F. G. Goodes have been launched or precipitated into slightly different careers. For alterations of the tape-measure and pins variety are not the only kind which may turn out to be crucial in a woman's life.' (Provided by Text Publishing, 2009.)
4 18 y separately published work icon The Tiger in the Tiger Pit Janette Turner Hospital , London : Abacus , 1987 Z141311 1983 single work novel An estranged New England family gather for their parents' 50th wedding anniversary.
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