Kalpa Imperial: The Greatest Empire That Never Was

Kalpa Imperial is a fantasy about "The Greatest Empire That Never Was", as the subtitle has it. The book is a compendium of several separate stories, mostly told by a professional storyteller (who also has an important additional role in one story), concerning the history of said empire. Most of the stories tell of Emperors and Empresses, some good, some bad, some mad -- how they came to power, how they fell from power, how they ruled. The stories are often romantic, but the romanticism is tinged by a sort of earthiness, and a realism that does not quite become cynical. The stories are nicely imagined, sometimes funny, sometimes brutal. The whole is billed as a novel, but the stories work fine separately, and are really linked only by geography and the voice of the storyteller, so it's more a linked collection of short fiction than a novel. There are eleven stories, or chapters, arranged in two books. The opening piece, "Portrait of the Emperor", tells us that a good man now sits on the throne of the Empire, and then goes on to tell of the founding of the empire, by a weakling boy who learned a different kind of strength. "The Two Hands" is a fable-like story of a usurper who ended up spending twenty years confined in his bedroom. "The End of a Dynasty, or The Natural History of Ferrets" tells of a young Crown Prince, son of a cruel Empress and a deposed Emperor, who grows up torn between the evil influence of his mother and the countervailing touch of a couple of kindly workmen. "Siege, Battle, and Victory of Selimmagud" is an ironic tale of a thief and deserter and his encounter with the General besieging the title city. "Concerning the Unchecked Growth of Cities" is a lovely long description of the varying history of a Northern city, sometimes the capitol, sometimes ignored, sometimes something quite else. Book two opens with "Portrait of the Empress", in which the storyteller who has been narrating these tales is recruited by the Great Empress to tell her of her Empire's history. She in turn tells him of the woman who rose from poverty to become the Great Empress. "And the Streets Empty" is a dark story of the vengeful destruction of a city by a jealous Empress. "The Pool" concerns a mysterious physician, and his encounters with those plotting to overturn the current dynasty. "Basic Weapons" is a colorful and macabre piece about a dealer in people, and a rich man, and obsession. "'Down There in the South'" is a long story of an aristocrat with a dark secret who is forced to flee from the ruling North to the rural South, and who is fated to change history when the North comes to invade. And "The Old Incense Road" tells of a mysterious orphan, a mysterious merchant, a caravan, and some "stories within the story", all eventually concerning another change of rulers. The stories are full of humor and tragedy, of cynicism and romanticism, of secret identities, of wisdom and folly, of blood, of nobility. The fantastical elements are slim: this

I found this book in the SciFi section of my local store but it's not really SciFi. But it could be (think Dune or Star Wars and the ups and downs of their Empires). The book is a series of stories, told as if spoken live by a storyteller, about different characters, emperors, empresses, soldiers, cities at different times in the history of an unspecified great Empire. It appeals to me because it is quirky. It reads eloquently but non-colloquially (it is translated). Yet the language is quite elegant and poetic. The tone and feel of the language appeal to me as much as the stories. The storyteller, also unnamed, is a bit of a character, admonishing his (or her) listeners (us) to pay attention, or otherwise chastising them. But it all works. There's something timeless and fascinating about our interest in great Empires. The stories cover millenia of years and rulers, during which time the Empire rises and falls many times. The storyteller is a bit of a cynic and makes side comments during the narratives. It is fascinating and engaging and I am glad I found it. The author is Latin American, which surprised me because the stories felt old European or Slavic at times, or Oriental or maybe Roman. The very essence of Empire comes through.

Excellent. The best thing I've read since summer. I picked this up because Le Guin was the translator. Perhaps we might see more of Gorodischer's work translated in the future.

This book is a beautiful web of stories told by a storyteller in the streets of an empire that never existed. It rivals Italian Folktales and Damascus Nights. Every one of the stories is lovely in itself, and they form a whole that still haunts me a month after a read this for the first time.This book was published by a small press and is a bit pricy, but it is worth every cent. It isn't the kind of book that can sit on a shelf, because it keeps you thinking about the wise and crazy emporers that dance about it's pages and the bloody and lyric history of the empire.

WOW! the combination of Angelica Gorodischer--Argentina's treasure of a fabulist--and Ursula K. LeGuin--one of America's premier sf writers--is too much to imagine, even by the two of them!! Yet it happened and with style. LeGuin has given an English voice to a great writer. Now to discuss the story itself. Kalpa Imperial is an empire that may or may not have existed. The storytellers keep it alive, either in reality or in the imagination. It hardly matters. The stories are engaging, full of wisdom, and larger than any empire that ever existed in any dimension. If you like LeGuin or Calvino or Ecco or Borges, you are in for a treat. Gorodischer will astound you. She is a welcome addition to that list. What's more, this is a book that will live in your own imagination long, long after you've put the pages on the shelf of your own empire wherever that may reside. Enjoy!