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Article: Quite the desert fox; Critic's choice.(Review)
- Article from:
- Daily Mail (London)
- Article date:
- July 26, 2002
- Author:
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 2002 Solo Syndication Limited. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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Byline: CHRISTOPHER MATTHEW
THE HUNT FOR ZERZURA: THE LOST OASIS AND THE DESERT WAR by Saul Kelly (John Murray, pound sterling19.99)
WHETHER truth is stranger than fiction depends on who's telling the tale.
Either way, it often inspires fiction writers to take the bare bones of a factual story and rework them into a confection of their own.
The Hunt For Zerzura is a case in point. It proclaims itself the true story behind The English Patient.
The Hungarian Count Ladislaus de Almasy, on whom Sean Kelly focuses much attention, is certainly the same Almasy whom Michael Ondaatje made the antihero of his 1992 Booker Prize-winning ...