Mass for Arras

by Andrzej Szczypiorski and Richard Lourie

Book Overview

At the core of this novel is the true fifteenth-century tragedy of, first, plague and hunger and, later, the brutal persecution of Jews and witches in the small French town of Arras. A Mass for Arras explores the personal and political consequences of fear, fanaticism, and fascism in the story of Jan, a young member of the intelligentsia. Arrogantly pious and full of revolutionary zeal, Jan wholeheartedly participates in the torments inflicted on...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0802134025
• ISBN13: 9780802134028
• Release Date: September 1994
• Publisher: Grove Press
• Length: 192 Pages
• Weight: 0.50 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.6" x 5.5" x 8.3"

Customer Reviews

Meditation on freedom and community

A Mass for Arras is a quiet book that sneaks up and mesmerizes you. For the first few pages I anticipated a heavy, philsophical book. A few more pages and I was hooked. Yes, the book is "philosophical" but in the manner of a great novel - it shows concretely how changing beliefs effect daily life. The book reconstructs history in a believable manner while clearly critizing the contemporary world - a book that works on many levels. Add it to your must read list.