A Sunday Times Book of the Year

'A stunning work of historical imagination . . . masterful in its portrayal of love, sex and friendship' - The Observer

'Sparrow [is] truly unforgettable' - Daily Mail

Meet Jacob - aka Sparrow - a boy slave in the Spanish city of New Carthage in the last years of pagan Rome.

Raised in a brothel at the edge of a dying empire, a boy of no known origin creates his own identity. He is Sparrow, who sings without reason and can fly from trouble. His world is a kitchen, a herb-scented garden, a loud and dangerous tavern, and the mysterious upstairs where the 'wolves' - prostitutes and slaves from every corner of the empire - conduct their business.

He spends his days listening to stories told by his beloved 'mother' Euterpe, running errands for her lover the cook, and dodging the blows of their brutal overseer and the machinations of the chief wolf, Melpomene. A hard fate awaits Sparrow, one that involves suffering, murder, mayhem, and the scattering of the women who have been his whole world . . .

In Sparrow, James Hynes brings the entirety of the Roman city of Carthago Nova - its markets, temples, taverns of the lowly and mansions of the rich - to vivid, brutal life.

'Hynes renders this hidden world so powerfully and vividly.' - The Guardian

Meet Jacob - aka Sparrow - a boy slave in a brothel in the Spanish city of New Carthage in the last years of pagan Rome. His story is as much for readers who were moved by A Little Life, Room and Shuggie Bain as those fascinated by The Silence of the Girls and I, Claudius.

About the Author
James Hynes is the author of several books including Sparrow, Next, Kings of Infinite Space, The Lecturer's Tale, Publish and Perish, and The Wild Colonial Boy. He lives in Austin, Texas.

Reviews
A stunning work of historical imagination . . . Masterful in its portrayal of love, sex and friendship * The Observer *
Utterly engrossing, vivid, and honest, this coming of age story reaches across millennia to grab us by the throat.' -- Emma Donoghue, author of Room
An unnerving, exhilarating, unflinching portrayal of sex, slavery and sisterhood . . . This is a novel of ancient times for our times. And it is splendid, a work of scorching distinction. -- Jim Crace, author of Harvest
Sparrow is a brilliantly written page-turner, a complex, vital, sometimes brutal story told with heartrending beauty. -- Kate Christensen, author of The Great Man
Hynes, using his pen like a cinematic overview, makes us see everything, the streets, the markets, the homes . . . everything is historically documented. * La Stampa *
Sparrow feels like an entirely authentic portrait . . . James Hynes renders this hidden world so powerfully and vividly. * The Times *
A bleak and brutal story, vividly told by Hynes, who has created a truly unforgettable character in the resilient Sparrow * Daily Mail *



Book Information
ISBN 9781529092394
Author James Hynes
Format Hardback
Page Count 464
Imprint Picador
Publisher Pan Macmillan
Weight(grams) 694g
Dimensions(mm) 241mm * 165mm * 45mm