''The Leper's Companions'' is a novel by British author

Julia Blackburn Julia Blackburn (born 1948) is a British author of both fiction and non-fiction. She is the daughter of poet Thomas Blackburn and artist Rosalie de Meric. Julia Blackburn's bohemian and troubled upbringing is the subject of her memoir ''The T ...

, published in 1999 by

Pantheon Books Pantheon Books is an American book publishing imprint. Founded in 1942 as an independent publishing house in New York City by Kurt and Helen Wolff, it specialized in introducing progressive European works to American readers. In 1961, it was ...

. The narrative follows a grieving woman who escapes from the present by telling the story of a medieval English village. The book was shortlisted for the 1999

Women's Prize for Fiction The Women's Prize for Fiction (previously with sponsor names Orange Prize for Fiction (1996–2006 and 2009–2012), Orange Broadband Prize for Fiction (2007–08) and Baileys Women's Prize for Fiction (2014–2017) is one of the United Kingdom's ...

Summary

An unnamed woman narrates the novel from the modern age. She is bereaved at the start of the novel. In an attempt to escape her emotions, she casts her mind back to the past. She finds herself in a medieval village haunted by various supernatural beings. A wandering leper appears in the village and guides some of the villagers on a pilgrimage to Jerusalem.

Reception

The ''

New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

'' said the book had "a remarkable intensity". ''

Publishers Weekly ''Publishers Weekly'' (''PW'') is an American weekly trade news magazine targeted at publishers, librarians, booksellers, and literary agents. Published continuously since 1872, it has carried the tagline, "The International News Magazine of ...

'' said the novel's plot was "sometimes digressive and difficult to follow" but praised Blackburn's "keen sympathy for her characters and her sensual evocation of medieval life".''

The National Post The ''National Post'' is a Canadian English-language broadsheet newspaper and the flagship publication of the American-owned Postmedia Network. It is published Mondays through Saturdays, with Monday released as a digital e-edition only.

'' offered a mixed review, describing the scenery of the novel as "haunting and beautifully described" but said the story felt incomplete. A review from ''

Kirkus ''Kirkus Reviews'' is an American book review magazine founded in 1933 by Virginia Kirkus. The magazine's publisher, Kirkus Media, is headquartered in New York City. ''Kirkus Reviews'' confers the annual Kirkus Prize to authors of fiction, non ...

'' praised the book's vividness, describing it as "difficult, ambitious, demanding—and exquisitely, unendingly, depthlessly beautiful both in matter and manner, to be read not just once". However, the reviewer was critical of the book's simplicity in contrast to The Book of Colour.

Awards

''The Leper's Companions'' was shortlisted for the

in 1999. This was the second time a Blackburn novel appeared on the shortlist, following the inclusion of The Book of Colour in 1996.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Leper's Companions 1999 British novels Pantheon Books books