The Wanderer [Hardcover]

Mika Waltari (Author), Naomi Walford (Translator)

Product Details

• Hardcover: 438 pages
• Publisher: G. P. Putnam's Sons; 1st edition (June 1951)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 9997519329
• ISBN-13: 978-9997519320
• Product Dimensions: 8.5 x 6 x 1.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.8 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,005,624 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

18 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Medieval Adventure, July 29, 2004

By 

Gail Moore "avid reader" (vancouver canada) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The Wanderer (Hardcover)

Ever since reading The Egyptian, I have been checking out used book stores for anything by Mika Waltari, wish more of his books were still in print. He wrote superb medieval fiction and it was well worth the search to find a copies of both The Adventurer and The Wanderer. The first part, The Adventurer is an
adventure novel set in various parts Europe in the early sixteenth century with rich descriptions of both characters and places, it is the story of one man's life Michael, a bastard born in Abo, Finland sometime in the year 1502 or 1503 he believes. Book Two, The Wanderer continues the adventures of Michael the Finn from Abo and this time the settings are throughout the extensive kingdom of Suleiman the Magnificent, supreme ruler of the Ottoman Turks.

After setting out from Vienna at the end of The Adventurer, Michael and his friend Andy are captured by pirates and compelled to convert to Islam to avoid death, he eventually ends up as the slave of Ibrahim, the Grand Vizier, second most powerful ruler after Suleiman. Michael's skill with languages is his gift and propels him to the front of the action again and again, traveling to Istanbul, Baghdad, Tunis and Budapest and experiencing many battles and sieges. A great deal of the action also takes place in the shadier, behind the scenes world of the harem, where concubines and eunuchs take power by more subtle means.

I highly recommend both or either of these books to anyone who enjoys medieval fiction with detailed and vivid scene descriptions and characters with depth. The Wanderer is particularly unique as instead of the usual Crusades style story of Christians fighting Moslems, these characters embrace the other religion and move through the other world.

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Fabulous Read, November 27, 2004

By 

C. L Wilson (Elmhurst, Illinois United States) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The Wanderer (Hardcover)

I cannot add anything to the review from the reader in Vancouver who says it all. Both "The Adventurer" and "The Wanderer" are terrific stories from beginning to end. Can never guess where they are heading. And as in "The Adventurer" a lot is learned about the history of the time, in this case, Islam and the Moslem way of life in the early 1500s. Not a bad thing to know in these times. I am very sorry that there is not another one of these books about Michael, as he and his buddy Andy led picturesque and exciting lives, to say the least. It makes for great and fun reading, with a tad of learning thrown in for good measure. You won't go wrong by picking these up, believe me.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars ANOTHER SOMEWHAT FORGOTTEN TREASURE, August 3, 2006

By 

D. Blankenship (The Ozarks) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The Wanderer (Hardcover)

First published in 1951 (I can remember my mother reading it to me) this work is on par with the Egyptian and in fact is probably even more of a page turner. So many of these wonderful old books are all but forgotten, and that is truely a pity as we are missing some great reading. This particular story takes place in the Sixteenth Century. A young Finnish scholar is the reader and hero who spins this wonderful tale. The book more or less opens with the hero and his brother setting off on a pilgrims journey to the Holy Land... It is pure historical adventsure after this. The author has well researched his subject and is a natural story teller. The author has the ability to put you in the middle of the story and keeps you there page after page. I hate to get into the plot deeper as I am not overly fond of spoilers. If you like and injoy well written, well researched historyical fiction, then I feel quite sure you will enjoy this one as I have over the years (several rereads after mom gave the the start). Recommend this one highly.