The publication of Nick Jubber’s book, Epic Continent, couldn’t be more timely.
As Great Britain slides towards Brexit on 31 October, Epic Continent tells the tale of Jubber’s adventures across a troubled continent
He explores some of Europe’s most iconic ancient and medieval stories, from the Odyssey to the Icelandic sagas, and discovers how they resonate today.
‘These are the stories that made Europe, and by travelling in their slipstream we can discover what makes the continent tick,’ he says.
Jubber’s journey includes encounters with Sicilian puppeteers, Balkan war veterans and Icelandic folk-singers, adventures in underwater Mediterranean caves, icy fjords and rain-sodden barrows.
The New European describes the book as ‘original and thoroughly absorbing’, by a travel writer of ‘immense ability’.
‘All of Europe is here in the local and the displaced, making one vast epic story of its own.’
Wanderlust Magazine says the book is ‘travel gold…a genuine epic’.
Comments The Spectator: ‘In this thoughtful travelogue he has woven together colourful ancient and modern threads into a European tapestry that combines the sombre with the sparkling.’
According to Peter Davidson, author of The Idea of North, the book is ‘a timely study of how epic can sadly harden frontiers and justify violence, while retaining the more hopeful possibility of re-invention to prompt dialogue and shape new communities of song.’
And for Asian Review of Books, Jubber’s Epic Continents is simply ‘his best book yet’.
Jubber is a writer and traveller, with a passion for history and a pair of itchy feet. He’s fascinated by storytelling, nomadism, exploration and the connections – or misconnections – between past and present.
He has written for The Guardian, The Observer, the TLS, the Globe and Mail and BBC Online, spoken on BBC Radio 4 and has written plays performed at the Edinburgh Festival, the Finborough Theatre and the Actors’ Centre.
Leave A Comment