About this title: Iris Murdoch's 24th novel, published in her 71st year, tells of Alfred Ludens' long search for Professor Marcus Vallar, convinced he possesses a secret fundamental to the human condition. But is Vallar a genius, a madman or a saint? What Ludens discovers is certainly not what he expects.
Note: This is a general synopsis. Each listing is described below.
Edition: American ed.
Binding: Hardcover
Publisher: Viking Books
Date Published: 1990
ISBN-13:9780670829996ISBN:0670829994
Description: Very good in very good dust jacket. Very Good, In very good dust jacket. Sewn binding. Cloth over boards. With dust jacket. 640 p. read more
Binding: Trade paperback
Publisher: Penguin Books
Date Published: 1991
ISBN-13:9780140126648ISBN:0140126643
Description: Fine. No dust jacket as issued. Very light edge wear. No marks. Tight, square book. Tanning pages. Trade paperback (US). Glued binding. 576 p. Audience: General/trade. read more
Edition: First American Edition
Binding: Cloth
Publisher: Viking Press, New York, New York, U.S.A.
Date Published: 1990
ISBN-13:9780670829996ISBN:0670829994
Description: Very Good + to Near Fine in Very Good- jacket. Hard Cover. 8vo-over 7¾"-9¾" Full Number Line 1-10, remainder mark bottom, light to moderate wear. Old price sticker DJ front. (Store Display-GF) read more
Edition: First American
Binding: Hardcover
Publisher: Viking Adult, New York
Date Published: 1990
ISBN-13:9780670829996ISBN:0670829994
Description: Good. 1990 hardback with d/j good condition ex library Thanks for looking at our books we ship fast...Iris Murdoch's 24th novel a San Francisco Chronicle bestseller explores the meaning of life in a story of love and betrayal faith and doubt. Murdoch works wi. read more
Description: Very Good. 0670829994 *HCDJ * SHIPPING WITHIN 24 HOURS! ** QUESTIONS ANSWERED QUICKLY ** THANKS ** HARDCOVER BOOK WITH DUST JACKET. read more
Binding: Hardcover
Publisher: Viking Adult
Date Published: 1990
ISBN-13:9780670829996ISBN:0670829994
Description: A wonderful copy with some minor edgewear to the cover. Dust Jacket has some edgewear present. -, Hard Cover, Very Good / Very Good. read more
Binding: Hardcover
Publisher: Viking Adult
Date Published: 1990
ISBN-13:9780670829996ISBN:0670829994
Description: A wonderful copy with some minor edgewear to the cover. Dust Jacket may have chips and close tears. A former library book with the usual identifiers in a protective glossy dust jacket covering. Book has tanning or browning due to normal aging process. One library marking, and its on the outside spine. inside is clean-, Hard Cover, Very Good / Good. read more
Binding: Hardcover
Publisher: Viking Adult
Date Published: 1990
ISBN-13:9780670829996ISBN:0670829994
Description: Good in Good jacket. 63-V-Add: Ex-library. Books rated "Good" may have some notes, underlining, or highlighting. These books also may contain the previous owner's name, stamp, sticker, or gift inscription, or may be library discards. read more
Binding: Hardcover
Publisher: Viking Adult
Date Published: 1990
ISBN-13:9780670829996ISBN:0670829994
Description: Good in Good jacket. 115-X-Add Ex-library. Books rated "Good" may have some notes, underlining, or highlighting. These books also may contain the previous owner's name, stamp, sticker, or gift inscription, or may be library discards. read more
Description: Good. Former Library book. Shows some signs of wear, and may have some markings on the inside. Shipped to over one million happy customers. Your purchase benefits world literacy! read more
Description: Good. Former Library book. Shows some signs of wear, and may have some markings on the inside. Shipped to over one million happy customers. Your purchase benefits world literacy! read more
Description: Acceptable. Former Library book. Shows definite wear, and perhaps considerable marking on inside. Shipped to over one million happy customers. Your purchase benefits world literacy! read more
"Murdoch stalls halfway through this saga of a charismatic "philosopher" who's either moving into a realm of paranormal power or who is just barking mad. Murdoch's protagonist--the philosopher's diligent disciple, determined to wrest a brilliant moral treatise from the great man's tortured thoughts--is like a dog with a bone, and the narrative flags for long stretches as Murdoch illustrates his rather unvaried tenacity. Things finally pick up, and there are rewards, as usual, in the constellation of self-absorbed characters whose lives are directly or indirectly touched by this chain of events, but if you're not already a Murdoch fan, this late novel of hers won't likely turn you into one."
"I don't know many people who read Iris Murdoch and I totally get it. She's smart. Smarter than me. Smarter than you. And she likes to write about philosophy. The trouble is that she explores these philosphical ideas through domestic dramas which means that ordinary readers have difficulty with the text and stop reading and serious readers aren't going to pick up her books because the plots seem so mundane. Now granted, the plot to this book is anything but mundane but it is dense and difficult to finish."
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