---

The history of a family through 264 objects - set against a turbulent century - from an acclaimed writer and potter

---

THE NUMBER ONE SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLER

WINNER OF THE 2010 COSTA BIOGRAPHY AWARD

264 wood and ivory carvings, none of them bigger than a matchbox: Edmund de Waal was entranced when he first encountered the collection in his great uncle Iggie´s Tokyo apartment. When he later inherited the ´netsuke´, they unlocked a story far larger and more dramatic than he could ever have imagined.

From a burgeoning empire in Odessa to fin de siecle Paris, from occupied Vienna to Tokyo, Edmund de Waal traces the netsuke´s journey through generations of his remarkable family against the backdrop of a tumultuous century. ´You have in your hands a masterpiece´ Frances Wilson, Sunday Times ´The most brilliant book I´ve read for years... A rich tale of the pleasure and pains of what it is to be human´ Bettany Hughes, Daily Telegraph, Books of the Year´A complex and beautiful book´ Diana Athill

---

"[A] wonderful book" Dame Felicity Lott Waitrose Weekend

---

Edmund de Waal´s porcelain is shown in many museum collections round the world and he has recently made installations for the V&A and Tate Britain. He was apprenticed as a potter, studied in Japan and read English at Cambridge. He is Professor of Ceramics at the University of Westminster and lives in London with his family.

---