A Splendid Conspiracy

Fiction & Literature, Literary
Cover of the book A Splendid Conspiracy by Albert Cossery, New Directions
View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart
Author: Albert Cossery ISBN: 9780811221269
Publisher: New Directions Publication: May 25, 2010
Imprint: New Directions Language: English
Author: Albert Cossery
ISBN: 9780811221269
Publisher: New Directions
Publication: May 25, 2010
Imprint: New Directions
Language: English

Three friends in a small Egyptian city celebrate idleness, elegance, and joie de vivre.

Summoned home to Egypt after a long European debauch (disguised as “study”), our hero Teymour—in the opening line of A Splendid Conspiracy—is feeling “as unlucky as a flea on a bald man’s head.” Poor Teymour sits forlorn in a provincial café, a far cry from his beloved Paris. Two old friends, however, rescue him. They applaud his phony diploma as perfect in “a world where everything is false” and they draw him into their hedonistic rounds as gentlemen of leisure. Life, they explain, “while essentially pointless is extremely interesting.”  The small city may seem tedious, but there are women to seduce, powerful men to tease, and also strange events: rich notables are disappearing.

Eyeing the machinations of our three pleasure seekers and nervous about the missing rich men, the authorities soon see—in complex schemes to bed young girls—signs of political conspiracies. The three young men, although mistaken for terrorists, enjoy freedom, wit, and romance. After all, though “not every man is capable of appreciating what is around him,” the conspirators in pleasure certainly do.

View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart

Three friends in a small Egyptian city celebrate idleness, elegance, and joie de vivre.

Summoned home to Egypt after a long European debauch (disguised as “study”), our hero Teymour—in the opening line of A Splendid Conspiracy—is feeling “as unlucky as a flea on a bald man’s head.” Poor Teymour sits forlorn in a provincial café, a far cry from his beloved Paris. Two old friends, however, rescue him. They applaud his phony diploma as perfect in “a world where everything is false” and they draw him into their hedonistic rounds as gentlemen of leisure. Life, they explain, “while essentially pointless is extremely interesting.”  The small city may seem tedious, but there are women to seduce, powerful men to tease, and also strange events: rich notables are disappearing.

Eyeing the machinations of our three pleasure seekers and nervous about the missing rich men, the authorities soon see—in complex schemes to bed young girls—signs of political conspiracies. The three young men, although mistaken for terrorists, enjoy freedom, wit, and romance. After all, though “not every man is capable of appreciating what is around him,” the conspirators in pleasure certainly do.

More books from New Directions

Cover of the book The Daring Young Man on the Flying Trapeze by Albert Cossery
Cover of the book A Good Comb: The Sayings of Muriel Spark by Albert Cossery
Cover of the book Battles in the Desert & Other Stories by Albert Cossery
Cover of the book The Edge of the Horizon by Albert Cossery
Cover of the book All The Poems: Stevie Smith by Albert Cossery
Cover of the book Selected Poems by Albert Cossery
Cover of the book Dog Symphony by Albert Cossery
Cover of the book Kornel Esti by Albert Cossery
Cover of the book The Poetry of Thought: From Hellenism to Celan by Albert Cossery
Cover of the book Al Que Quiere! by Albert Cossery
Cover of the book The Miracle Cures of Dr. Aira by Albert Cossery
Cover of the book Baby Doll & Tiger Tail: A screenplay and play by Tennessee Williams by Albert Cossery
Cover of the book Midwinter Day by Albert Cossery
Cover of the book One Hundred Poems from the Chinese by Albert Cossery
Cover of the book Ancient Tillage by Albert Cossery
We use our own "cookies" and third party cookies to improve services and to see statistical information. By using this website, you agree to our Privacy Policy