"The Ottoman Empire has captured Vienna and is now laying siege to the Austrian government in exile. Both the United States of Europe and the Kingdom of Bohemia have come to Austria's assistance but everyone knows it is going to be a long, brutal struggle. General Mike Stearns proposes opening up a second front in the Levant which the USE's emperor Gustavus Adolphus approves. Meanwhile, Poland is coming to a boil. Gretchen Richter, newly elected chancellor...

Daniel Kehlmann masterfully weaves the fates of many historical figures into this enchanting and picturesque book of magical realism and adventure. It is the story of the 17th century vagabond performer and trickster Tyll Ulenspiegel that begins before he is enshrined in rumors and myths. We meet him as a scrawny boy growing up in a quiet village. When his father, a miller with an interest in alchemy and magic, is found out by the church, Tyll is...