BOOKS: Paperbacks – Gilgamesh By Joan London ATLANTIC pounds 7.99 (256pp)
The Independent – United Kingdom
May 21, 2004
Emma Hagestadt
Taking a baby on the Orient Express before the days of disposable
nappies is one of the many challenges faced by Edith, the heroine of
London’s spirited debut novel. Brought up on a rickety farmstead in
south-western Australia, Edith finds her life transformed by a visit
from her exotic cousin, Leopold, and his Armenian friend, Aram. By
the end of their stay Edith is pregnant. Ignoring warnings about the
outbreak of war, she sets off to Armenia. London peoples her European
checkpoints with black market racketeers and threadbare bohemians.
Sadly, Edith’s adventure is wrapped up a little too soon. EH