Media Center: ‘Amnesia’ by Peter Carey
WHO: Peter Carey
WHAT: AMNESIA, a novel
WHEN: Published by Knopf January 14, 2015
WHERE: Set in Australia and the US.
WHY: “Turbo-charged and hyperenergetic…Amnesia responds to some of the biggest issues of our time, and reminds us that no other contemporary novelist is better able to mix farce with ferocity, or to better effect.”
—Andrew Motion, THE GUARDIAN
“Cartwheeling prose and dazzling intellect.
“From two-time Booker winner Carey comes this complex new novel, focusing on the author’s native Australia, but exploring themes of journalistic freedom and Internet ethics.
“At the center of the book is the young Australian Gabrielle Baillieux, who releases a virus called the Angel Worm in the computer system that controls the Australian prison system, releasing thousands of prisoners throughout Australia and, inadvertently, in the U.S. The move could be construed as an act of terrorism, a bold stroke in the fight for human rights, or just a geeky plan gone awry.
“Journalist Felix Moore is hired to write Gabrielle’s story sympathetically, to avoid her extradition. In the process, he spends time with her mother, the actress Celine Baillieux, whom he had previously known in college. Looking back through the two women’s lives, Felix also explores Australia’s history since WWII, confusing himself but also educating readers about the Land Down Under.” —PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Media Resources:
About the book | About the author | Read an excerpt | International praise | Download the jacket | Download the author photo
Publicist for this title:
Erinn Hartman | 212-572-2345 | ehartman@penguinrandomhouse.com