book details

Book: The Broken Boots Guide to Astlavonia by Nathan Braund

categories: Book, Humour, Travel, Dagger, Characters, Surreal, Black Comedy

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Nathan Braund

about this book: When I went to live in places like Estonia, Japan and Oman, I was suddenly struck by how far I should integrate myself into these cultures. After all, I wasn't there on a two week holiday so needed to try to blend in. However, could I genuinely fit in and, if I could, how far should I try to go native? In 'The Broken Boots Guide to Astlavonia' I decided to make this idea physical and urgent with the dagger law: the main character goes to live in Astlavonia but soon discovers that all disputes are settled with a knife. He is given a dagger and has to decide if he would actually use it if challenged. That makes it sound like some kind of action novel but it's a black comedy with all kinds of strange situations and bizarre characters. Be warned: a lot of readers said they laughed out loud in public places.