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From the author of A Meal in Winter, a resonant story of war and friendship

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1919. The Russian Civil War. It is the harsh dead of winter, as four soldiers set up camp in a forest somewhere near the Romanian front line. There is a lull in the fighting, so their days are filled with precious hours of freedom, enjoying the tranquillity of a nearby pond and trying to forget their terrifying nightmares, all the while talking, smoking and waiting. Waiting for spring to come, waiting for their battalion to move on, waiting for the inevitable resumption of violence. Tightly focused and simply told, this is a story of friendship and the fragments of happiness that can illuminate the darkness of war.

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Hubert Mingarelli is the author of numerous novels, short story collections and fiction for young adults. Four Soldiers won the Prix Médicis. His novel A Meal in Winter was shortlisted for the Independent Foreign Fiction Prize. He lives in Grenoble. Sam Taylor is a translator, novelist and journalist. His translated works include Laurent Binet´s award-winning novel HHhH and Joel Dicker´s bestselling The Truth About the Harry Quebert Affair. His own novels have been translated in 10 languages.

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