“A History of the World in 10 1/2 Chapters”

A stowaway aboard Noah´s Ark gives us his account of the Voyage – a surprising, subversive one, quite unlike the official version – which explains a lot about how the human race has subsequently developed. A guest lecturer on a cruise ship in the Aegean has his work interrupted by a group of mysterious visitors who place him in a cruel dilemma. An ecclesiastical court in medieval France hears a bizarre case… Julian Barnes creates a kaleidoscope of narrative voices – from fiction and fact, painting and snatches of autobiography – that comes slowly and compellingly into focus.