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Son of Nobody
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25 copies available
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The past is never done with: always the song continues
Harlow Donne has devoted his life to the Classical world. When a chance comes up to study an obscure collection of papyrus fragments at Oxford University, he seizes it. Though it means leaving his daughter and fracturing marriage back home in Canada, this is the kind of career break he desperately needs.
In the depths of the Bodleian Library, Harlow discovers a lost account of the Trojan War, a glimpse into the founding of Western civilization itself. He names the epic poem The Psoad , after its protagonist, a Greek commoner identified as Psoas of Midea but known to all as 'son of nobody'.
As sole translator and interpreter of the Psoad, Harlow dedicates the poem and its footnotes to his daughter, Helen. Under his gaze, the text unlocks echoes of Ancient Greece into the present day, and a personal message to his beloved child appears. Despite the two-thousand-year gap between the two, a thread hasn't frayed: the universal song of homesickness and regret, of ambition, love and grief.
In this masterpiece of myth, history and domesticity, Son of Nobody explores how stories become facts, the price we pay to share them and how we live - then, now and always.
Harlow Donne has devoted his life to the Classical world. When a chance comes up to study an obscure collection of papyrus fragments at Oxford University, he seizes it. Though it means leaving his daughter and fracturing marriage back home in Canada, this is the kind of career break he desperately needs.
In the depths of the Bodleian Library, Harlow discovers a lost account of the Trojan War, a glimpse into the founding of Western civilization itself. He names the epic poem The Psoad , after its protagonist, a Greek commoner identified as Psoas of Midea but known to all as 'son of nobody'.
As sole translator and interpreter of the Psoad, Harlow dedicates the poem and its footnotes to his daughter, Helen. Under his gaze, the text unlocks echoes of Ancient Greece into the present day, and a personal message to his beloved child appears. Despite the two-thousand-year gap between the two, a thread hasn't frayed: the universal song of homesickness and regret, of ambition, love and grief.
In this masterpiece of myth, history and domesticity, Son of Nobody explores how stories become facts, the price we pay to share them and how we live - then, now and always.
304 pages, Hardcover
Expected publication March 31, 2026
8763 people want to read
About the author
Yann Martel
42 books5,236 followersYann Martel is a Canadian author who wrote the Man Booker Prize–winning novel Life of Pi, an international bestseller published in more than 50 territories. It has sold more than 12 million copies worldwide and spent more than a year on the bestseller lists of the New York Times and The Globe and Mail, among many other best-selling lists. Life of Pi was adapted for a movie directed by Ang Lee, garnering four Oscars including Best Director and winning the Golden Globe Award for Best Original Score.
Martel is also the author of the novels The High Mountains of Portugal, Beatrice and Virgil, and Self, the collection of stories The Facts Behind the Helsinki Roccamatios, and a collection of letters to Canada's Prime Minister 101 Letters to a Prime Minister. He has won a number of literary prizes, including the 2001 Hugh MacLennan Prize for Fiction and the 2002 Asian/Pacific American Award for Literature.
Martel lives in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, with writer Alice Kuipers and their four children. His first language is French, but he writes in English.
Martel is also the author of the novels The High Mountains of Portugal, Beatrice and Virgil, and Self, the collection of stories The Facts Behind the Helsinki Roccamatios, and a collection of letters to Canada's Prime Minister 101 Letters to a Prime Minister. He has won a number of literary prizes, including the 2001 Hugh MacLennan Prize for Fiction and the 2002 Asian/Pacific American Award for Literature.
Martel lives in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, with writer Alice Kuipers and their four children. His first language is French, but he writes in English.
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Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews
November 23, 2025
deeply sad meditation on grief and violence, beautiful stuff
December 22, 2025
As a lover of Greek mythology, I was so excited to receive the ARC of Son of Nobody! This was truly an original novel, both in the structure and the alternative account of The Trojan War.
Rather than the increasingly common retellings, Martel imagines The Trojan War through the experience of a long forgotten soldier; he was no Agamemnon or Achilles, just a man fighting a decade long war away from home. Harlow, the academic that discovers his version of events, is also a long way from home at Oxford. Both men miss their wives and children, but remain dedicated to their cause, to their ultimate detriment.
Imaginative, emotional, and reflective - Son of Nobody is a book I will definitely be purchasing and recommending once it reaches shelves.
Rather than the increasingly common retellings, Martel imagines The Trojan War through the experience of a long forgotten soldier; he was no Agamemnon or Achilles, just a man fighting a decade long war away from home. Harlow, the academic that discovers his version of events, is also a long way from home at Oxford. Both men miss their wives and children, but remain dedicated to their cause, to their ultimate detriment.
Imaginative, emotional, and reflective - Son of Nobody is a book I will definitely be purchasing and recommending once it reaches shelves.
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December 16, 2025The following book reviews have been shared by Text Publishing – publisher of Son of Nobody
‘stunningly imagined’ [starred review]
Kirkus
‘stunningly imagined’ [starred review]
Kirkus
Review of advance copy received from Netgalley
⭐️ Son of Nobody by Yann Martel — 4/5
**Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC**
TLDR:
An inventive, footnote-driven novel that parallels a lost Greek epic with a modern academic’s life. Rich thematic commentary on class and heroism, but the MMC’s personal story and growth feel underdeveloped.
📖 Who Would Enjoy This Book
- Readers who love Greek mythology, particularly those interested in revisiting the broad plotlines and themes of The Iliad
- Readers who enjoy unconventional narrative structures, including stories told through footnotes
The structure of this book is immediately striking. Each page is split in two: the upper half contains a translation of the Psoad, while the lower half consists of footnotes—and it’s within these footnotes that the real story unfolds. I thought this was a clever reflection of the MMC, whose personality is rooted in pedantry and analysis. His dissection of the Psoad—a fictional poem lost to history—is meticulous and detail-oriented, while his reflections on his own life are rendered in broad strokes. Many of his interactions are presented purely as back-and-forth dialogue, with little description or summarization, which further emphasizes this imbalance.
What stood out most were the parallels drawn between the MMC and the Psoad. Much like the poem’s main character, Harlow is portrayed as a “son of nobody”—a man of modest means separated from his wife and child. The arrival of the Greek ships at Troy and the hardships endured by the soldiers mirror Harlow’s arrival in the UK and the difficulties of student life with minimal financial resources. The parallels extend further: Agamemnon and his daughter echo Harlow and his daughter, and even the timing of certain Psoad passages aligns meaningfully with Harlow’s narrative. For instance, the sections dealing with Hades coincide with a major event around the 75% mark of the book.
Thematically, I especially enjoyed the reflections on the socioeconomics of war. The idea that war functioned almost as a social interaction—with its own unspoken etiquette and scripted dialogue—took me by surprise. Even more startling was the notion that men of importance (kings, princes, heroes) only fought one another, while lower-class soldiers were left to battle their counterparts on the opposing side. It felt almost preposterous, yet deeply revealing. It has been a long time since I read The Iliad, and even then it was an abridged version, but this emphasis on social class—and the idea that heroism is reserved for those descended from gods or kings—really stuck with me. The choice to make the bard of the Psoad a commoner was particularly effective, as it shapes the language of the poem and allows the text to question the “truths” presented in The Iliad, making the story more engaging overall.
While I enjoyed the book, I found myself wishing there was more to Harlow’s personal story. At times, it felt like his arc could be summarized in just a couple of sentences, and I wanted more depth. There also didn’t seem to be much character growth: Harlow begins the novel with his head in the clouds, driven by whims and lacking clear priorities, and he ends it much the same way. I would have liked to see more self-reflection and accountability regarding his choices. The ending, too, felt somewhat unresolved, as though not everything was fully wrapped up.
We also don’t learn much about Helen. Beyond knowing that she enjoys stories and can be stubborn—as many children are—we don’t get a strong sense of her individuality. Her likes, dislikes, and eccentricities remain vague, leaving her feeling slightly mysterious, almost reminiscent of how Lemony Snicket refers to the elusive Beatrice in A Series of Unfortunate Events.
**Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC**
TLDR:
An inventive, footnote-driven novel that parallels a lost Greek epic with a modern academic’s life. Rich thematic commentary on class and heroism, but the MMC’s personal story and growth feel underdeveloped.
📖 Who Would Enjoy This Book
- Readers who love Greek mythology, particularly those interested in revisiting the broad plotlines and themes of The Iliad
- Readers who enjoy unconventional narrative structures, including stories told through footnotes
The structure of this book is immediately striking. Each page is split in two: the upper half contains a translation of the Psoad, while the lower half consists of footnotes—and it’s within these footnotes that the real story unfolds. I thought this was a clever reflection of the MMC, whose personality is rooted in pedantry and analysis. His dissection of the Psoad—a fictional poem lost to history—is meticulous and detail-oriented, while his reflections on his own life are rendered in broad strokes. Many of his interactions are presented purely as back-and-forth dialogue, with little description or summarization, which further emphasizes this imbalance.
What stood out most were the parallels drawn between the MMC and the Psoad. Much like the poem’s main character, Harlow is portrayed as a “son of nobody”—a man of modest means separated from his wife and child. The arrival of the Greek ships at Troy and the hardships endured by the soldiers mirror Harlow’s arrival in the UK and the difficulties of student life with minimal financial resources. The parallels extend further: Agamemnon and his daughter echo Harlow and his daughter, and even the timing of certain Psoad passages aligns meaningfully with Harlow’s narrative. For instance, the sections dealing with Hades coincide with a major event around the 75% mark of the book.
Thematically, I especially enjoyed the reflections on the socioeconomics of war. The idea that war functioned almost as a social interaction—with its own unspoken etiquette and scripted dialogue—took me by surprise. Even more startling was the notion that men of importance (kings, princes, heroes) only fought one another, while lower-class soldiers were left to battle their counterparts on the opposing side. It felt almost preposterous, yet deeply revealing. It has been a long time since I read The Iliad, and even then it was an abridged version, but this emphasis on social class—and the idea that heroism is reserved for those descended from gods or kings—really stuck with me. The choice to make the bard of the Psoad a commoner was particularly effective, as it shapes the language of the poem and allows the text to question the “truths” presented in The Iliad, making the story more engaging overall.
While I enjoyed the book, I found myself wishing there was more to Harlow’s personal story. At times, it felt like his arc could be summarized in just a couple of sentences, and I wanted more depth. There also didn’t seem to be much character growth: Harlow begins the novel with his head in the clouds, driven by whims and lacking clear priorities, and he ends it much the same way. I would have liked to see more self-reflection and accountability regarding his choices. The ending, too, felt somewhat unresolved, as though not everything was fully wrapped up.
We also don’t learn much about Helen. Beyond knowing that she enjoys stories and can be stubborn—as many children are—we don’t get a strong sense of her individuality. Her likes, dislikes, and eccentricities remain vague, leaving her feeling slightly mysterious, almost reminiscent of how Lemony Snicket refers to the elusive Beatrice in A Series of Unfortunate Events.
December 6, 2025
In the scrolls of ancient papyrus, a researcher comes across a new name in the classic story of the Iliad. Expanding on this previously unknown character Psoas, "the son of nobody," he puts together the story of an everyday citizen in the war on Troy.
Alternating between the past and present, the researcher has left his wife and daughter in America in order to focus on the scrolls in England, and his personal life begins to mirror the trajectory of Psoas. He stakes his future on his discovery being embraced in academia and returning home to America. Not unlike the Iliad, now morphing towards the Psoad, the ending is not predictable or satisfying.
Intriguing, tragic, and a smart read.
Alternating between the past and present, the researcher has left his wife and daughter in America in order to focus on the scrolls in England, and his personal life begins to mirror the trajectory of Psoas. He stakes his future on his discovery being embraced in academia and returning home to America. Not unlike the Iliad, now morphing towards the Psoad, the ending is not predictable or satisfying.
Intriguing, tragic, and a smart read.
Read
November 26, 2025I am not actually going to rate this book because I had an advanced reader's copy ebook version that did not include the proper formatting that was described at the beginning of the book making it a little hard to read. Thus, I don't feel like I can give it a fair review. I suspect I would not have been super in love with this book no matter what because I am not really into Greek mythology. I definitely would have gotten more out of it if I remembered much of anything about the Iliad and the Odyssey.
Review of advance copy received from Netgalley
Wow, this book is incredible. Once again, Yann Martel gives us readers something to look forward to. If you enjoy Ancient Greek history, this book is definitely worth picking up when it is published. I look forward to reading more of Martel's work after this.
Thank you to NetGalley and W.W.Norton & Company for providing me with an advance copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
Thank you to NetGalley and W.W.Norton & Company for providing me with an advance copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
to-read-find
September 14, 2025Who recommended this book to me: Inprint 2025/26 season
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews