{"product_id":"9781632862860","title":"The Field of the Cloth of Gold","description":"\u003cstrong\u003eThe Field of the Cloth of Gold\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAuthor(s): Magnus Mills\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe Great Field lies in the bend of a broad, meandering river. Bounded on three sides by water, on the fourth side it dwindles gradually into wilderness. A handful of tents are scattered far and wide across its immensity. Their flags flutter in the warm breeze, rich with the promise of halcyon days.  \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eBut more and more people are setting up camp in the lush pastures, and with each new arrival, life becomes a little more complicated. And when a large and disciplined group arrives from across the river, emotions run so high that even a surplus of milk pudding can't soothe ruffled feathers. Change is coming; change that threatens the delicate balance of power in the Great Field.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eMagnus Mills's new novel takes its name from the site of a 1520 meeting between Henry VIII and Francis I of France, to improve relations between the countries as the Treaty of London deteriorated. It allegorically suggests a number of historical encounters on British soil: the coming of the Vikings, the coming of the Romans. But \u003ci\u003eThe Field of the Cloth of Gold\u003c\/i\u003e sits firmly outside of time, a skillful and surreal fable dealing with ideas of ownership, empire, immigration, charisma, diplomacy, and bureaucracy. It cements Magnus Mills's status as one of the most original and beloved novelists writing today.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eReview(s):\u003cbr\u003e\u003cp\u003e\"Another of his trademark, pitch-perfect, blackly funny fables . . . Surely the literary world's most original voice.\" —\u003ci\u003eThe Herald\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"[Mills] has created another mythic, mercurial world, a utopia that increasingly reveals its own fragility . . . Mills's devoted fans will revel in his bone-dry comic prose.\" —\u003ci\u003eLiterary Review\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"[Among] the great comic stylists . . . \u003ci\u003eThe Field of the Cloth of Gold \u003c\/i\u003eis another joyful performance . . . from one of Britain's most original, inimitable writers.\" —\u003ci\u003eSpectator\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"We’ve come to recognise what is distinctively Millsian: a plot that is slightly absurd, possibly allegorical, written in prose that is simple, stylish and deadpan. All is present and correct in this, his eighth novel.\" - \u003ci\u003eThe Daily Telegraph\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eISBN:  9781632862860\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e ","brand":"Bloomsbury USA","offers":[{"title":"Hardback","offer_id":40596581744846,"sku":"9781632862860","price":26.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0600\/7029\/7806\/products\/getimage_2c75687b-caff-4581-a4c8-1e2cba15ede8.jpg?v=1637862086","url":"https:\/\/pickwickbookshop.com\/products\/9781632862860","provider":"Pickwick Bookshop","version":"1.0","type":"link"}