Overview:
"Q" is a novel by Wu Ming / Luther Blissett first published in Italian in 1999. The novel is set in Europe during the 16th century, and deals with Protestant reformation movements.
"Luther Blissett" was a nom de plume for four Italian authors, Roberto Bui, Giovanni Cattabriga, Federico Guglielmi and Luca Di Meo, who were part of the "Luther Blissett Project", which ended in 1999. They now write under the name Wu Ming.
The novel has been translated into Danish, Dutch, English (British and American), French, German, Greek, Korean, Polish, Russian, Turkish, Basque, Czech, Portuguese (Brazilian), Spanish and Serbian.
Some years ago a group of four previously unknown Italian authors rode to bestsellerdom and (group) celebrity by borrowing the name of Luther Blissett, an Italian Serie A player of Afro-Caribbean origins to write a disruptive, uneven in parts but powerful and ultimately superb novel "Q" which is essentially a paean to freedom and the fight against the powerful. Later, the authors renaming themselves "Wu Ming" to avoid controversy published several more novels, some together like "54", "Manituana" or the recent “Altai”.
"Q" is narrated by an unnamed freedom fighter and rebel that started as a student of Luther at Wittenberg, but later disgusted by Luther's cozying up to princes and shying away from the revolutionary implications of his rejection of Rome, joined Thomas Muntzer in his 1524-1525 doomed uprising for freedom and equality against the powerful. Surviving the harsh repression, our narrator of many names becomes a "professional" rebel and freedom fighter either directly as in the Munster Anabaptist revolution of 1534-35 or indirectly in subverting the powerful Fuger banking house, preaching Anabaptism in the heartland of Catholicism or sponsoring underground printers of forbidden works.
However, “Q” a secret agent of the most reactionary Catholic Cardinal Carafa follows our hero's path and we see “Q”'s machinations through his letters addressed to his master which are interspersed with the novel's main narration - though these machinations are not always quite as we expect since Carafa's main interest is preserving the power of Rome which sometimes means allying with the Protestant rebels against the mighty Charles of Spain; the identity of “Q” is slowly revealed both to us and to our narrator and the final meeting between the two that climaxes the novel is a powerful finale.
“Q” is a panoramic novel that deserves all the acclaim it got and more, its strong leftist ethos reminded me powerfully of Howard Fast' Spartacus - the novel better known by its later adaptation in the famous 60's movie - though “Q” is also a novel of our times in blood, gore, language...
"The powerful is basterds and the basterds become powerful" may be a truism, but through the many adventures of our multi-faceted narrator - who also reminded me strongly of the picaresque anti-heroes of Mika Waltari especially Michael the Finn - we see the illustration of the above principle in blood and violent suppression of the oppressed as well as in the violent reprisals of the leaders of the oppressed when they get to be the basterds...
Highly, highly recommended as a dark, powerful and no-illusions read, you can get a taste of it from the free download linked above!
ENJOYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY!
And Blessed Are The Ones Who Care For Their Fellow Men!
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