Sacred Hunger

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Title Sacred Hunger
First edition cover
First edition cover
Author Barry Unsworth
Country United Kingdom
Language English
Genre(s) Historical novel
Publisher Hamish Hamilton
Released 27 February 1992
Media type Print (Hardback & Paperback)
Pages 640 pp (first edition, hardback)
ISBN ISBN 0-241-13003-4 (first edition, hardback)
Preceded by Sugar and Rum
Followed by Morality Play

Sacred Hunger is a historical novel by Barry Unsworth first published in 1992. It was joint winner of the Booker Prize that year, sharing the position with Michael Ondaatje's The English Patient.

[edit] Plot introduction

The story is set in the mid 18th century and centers around the Liverpool Merchant, a slave ship employed in the triangular trade. The two major characters are cousins Erasmus Kemp, son of a wealthy merchant from Lancashire, and Matthew Paris, a surgeon who goes on the voyage. The novel's central theme is greed, with the subject of slavery being a primary medium for exploring the issue.

Preceded by
The Famished Road
Man Booker Prize recipient
1992
with The English Patient
Succeeded by
Paddy Clarke Ha Ha Ha