Mr Fortune's Maggot

Mr Fortune's Maggot

Summary

'Witty, poetic, clairvoyant' John Updike

The Reverend Timothy Fortune, ex-clerk of the Hornsey branch of Lloyds Bank, has found his vocation: to convert the inhabitants of the remote tropical island of Fanua to Christianity. Even when everyone except for a young boy called Lueli remains indifferent to his preaching, Mr Fortune's good spirits cannot be dampened - until one day his faith is put to a terrible test.

'This quizzical tale is so intensely moving' Gillian Beer, New Statesman

'Original, elegant and hypnotically strange' Miranda Seymour, The New York Times

'Sylvia Townsend Warner pursues the psychology of the story with beautiful accuracy' John Carey

Reviews

  • Original, elegant and hypnotically strange
    Miranda Seymour, The New York Times

About the author

Sylvia Townsend Warner

Sylvia Townsend Warner (1893-1978) grew up in rural Devonshire before moving to London and writing her debut novel, Lolly Willowes (1926). With her partner Valentine Ackland, she was active in the Communist Party and served in the Red Cross during the Spanish Civil War. Her novels include Mr Fortune's Maggot, The True Heart, Summer Will Show, After the Death of Don Juan, The Corner That Held Them and The Flint Anchor.
Learn More

Sign up to the Penguin Newsletter

For the latest books, recommendations, author interviews and more