February 2012 Book of the Month.

Shortlisted for the Galaxy International Author of the Year Award 2011.

THE ORANGE PRIZE WINNING DEBUT FROM A TRULY EXTRAORDINARY TALENT.

A Special Edition of The Tiger's Wife by Tea Obreht to celebrate Orion's 20th anniversary.

A tiger escapes from a zoo during a Nazi bombing raid on a village in the balkans in 1941. His nocturnal visits hold the inhabitants of a local village in a terrified thrall. But for one boy, the tiger is a thing of magic. This is the beginning of a story about that boy's granddaughter, now a Doctor. She receives word of her beloved grandfather's death in circumstances shrouded in mystery. She realises he may have died searching for 'the deathless man', a vagabond who was said to be immortal. Struggling to understand why a man of science would undertake such a quest, she stumbles upon a clue that will lead her to the extraordinary story of the tiger's wife.

Synopsis

Below is a video of Ben Twiston-Davies discussing the sculptures he made for the 20th anniversay edtions of the Orion classics, specifically The Reader by Bernhard Schlink.

'Having sifted through everything I have heard about the tiger and his wife, I can tell you that this much is fact: in April of 1941, without declaration or warning, the German bombs started falling over the city and did not stop for three days. The tiger did not know that they were bombs...' A tiger escapes from the local zoo, padding through the ruined streets and onwards, to a ridge above the Balkan village of Galina. His nocturnal visits hold the villagers in a terrified thrall. But for one boy, the tiger is a thing of magic - Shere Khan awoken from the pages of The Jungle Book. Natalia is the granddaughter of that boy. Now a doctor, she is visiting orphanages after another war has devastated the Balkans. On this journey, she receives word of her beloved grandfather's death, far from their home, in circumstances shrouded in mystery. From fragments of stories her grandfather told her as a child, Natalia realises he may have died searching for 'the deathless man', a vagabond who was said to be immortal. Struggling to understand why a man of science would undertake such a quest, she stumbles upon a clue that will lead her to a tattered copy of The Jungle Book, and then to the extraordinary story of the tiger's wife.

Celebrating Orion's 20th Anniversary in chronological order by original publication date are:

1992    The Copper Beech by Maeve Binchy
The first novel published by Orion. A million copy seller from the world’s favourite storyteller.
1992    The Six Wives of Henry VIII by Antonia Fraser
Narrative non-fiction from one of our leading historians. This ground-breaking title is still the definitive book on the subject.
1993    The Black Ice by Michael Connelly
The first Michael Connelly title published by Orion, showcasing our ability to build quality commercial crime brands.
1994     Horrid Henry by Francesca Simon
The original Horrid Henry book was the start of a massive multi-platform entertainment brand demonstrating the breadth of our Children’s list.
1995     Sophie’s World by Jostein Gaarder
A publishing sensation which brought translated literary fiction to the mass market and formed the kernel of the W&N literary fiction list.
1997     Black and Blue by Ian Rankin

Winner of the CWA Gold Dagger, this novel cemented Ian Rankin’s status as the gold standard of British crime.
1997    The Reader by Bernhard Schlink
Translated fiction which sold a million copies and became an award-winning film release, bringing recent history into sharp and unforgettable focus.
2000    A Child Called It by Dave Pelzer
The original Misery memoir, Dave Pelzer’s story was shocking and controversial and founded a genre.
2000    Revelation Space by Alastair Reynolds
Science fiction on the grandest and most commercial scale from Gollancz, redefining space opera for the new century.
2001     Tell No One by Harlan Coben

The event publication which made SUNDAY TIMES No.1 bestseller Harlan Coben a household name and cemented Orion’s ability to create commercial brands.
2003     Stalin by Simon Sebag Montefiore
Winner of the Best History Book at the British Book Awards 2004, this narrative character-based history broke new ground.
2004     The Shadow of the Wind by Carlos Ruiz Zafon
A massive million plus bestseller in the UK and one of the bestselling books of all time in Spain – making translated fiction truly accessible.
2004     Himalaya by Michael Palin
Selling over half a million copies in hardback and staying at No.1 for 11 consecutive weeks, this is the book that proved Michael Palin was not only a beloved television and film personality, he was a formidable travel writer as well.
2004     Wolf Brother by Michelle Paver
Selling over half a million copies at the height of the Harry Potter years and with massive rights sales internationally, this title is one of the stars of our impressive Children’s list.
2005     Labyrinth by Kate Mosse
A huge SUNDAY TIMES No.1 bestseller, this engrossing ‘time-slip’ novel combines brilliant storytelling and strong characters with a puzzle that has obsessed men for centuries: the secret of the Grail.
2007     Salmon Fishing in the Yemen by Paul Torday
Winner of the PG Wodehouse Award, Torday is a unique and indefinable author whose debut won him a substantial, dedicated fan base.
2008    No Time for Goodbye by Linwood Barclay
A true must-read and a Richard and Judy favourite, this title announced the arrival of an exciting new thriller bestseller from Orion.
2009     Dead Until Dark by Charlaine Harris
The first True Blood TV tie-in novel showing the diversity and commercial potential of the Gollancz list.
2010     Life by Keith Richards
This once-in-a-generation memoir of a true rock legend was a formidable No. 1 SUNDAY TIMES bestseller.
2011     The Tiger’s Wife by Téa Obreht
Winner of the 2011 Orange Prize for Fiction, this debut novel has been almost universally praised as a triumph of modern literature and introduced a star of the future.

About the Author

Tea Obreht was born in 1985 in the former Yugoslavia, emigrating to the US in 1997. She was the youngest author on The New Yorker's Top 20 Writers under 40 List, and one of the youngest authors ever to be extracted in the magazine. Her short story, 'The Laugh', debuted in The Atlantic Fiction Issue and was then chosen for The Best American Short Stories 2010, while her short story, 'The Sentry' appeared in the Guardian Summer Fiction Issue alongside stories by Hilary Mantel and David Mitchell. She lives in New York. More books by this author Author 'Like for Like' recommendation