The Sheltering Sky
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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| Author | Paul Bowles |
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| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Genre(s) | Novel |
| Publisher | John Lehmann |
| Released | 1949 |
| Media type | Print (Hardback & Paperback) |
| Pages | 304 pp |
| ISBN | NA |
The Sheltering Sky is a 1949 novel by Paul Bowles. The story centers on Port and Kit Moresby, a married couple originally from New York who travel to the North African desert accompanied by their friend Tunner. The journey, initially an attempt by Port and Kit to resolve their marital difficulties, is quickly made fraught by the travelers' ignorance of the dangers that surround them.
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[edit] Film, TV or theatrical adaptations
The Sheltering Sky was adapted by Bernardo Bertolucci into a 1990 film starring Debra Winger and John Malkovich, with screenplay by Mark Peploe. Bertolucci turns the bleak, sinister tone of the latter part of the book into a desert love story.
[edit] Musical references
- The 1981 album Discipline by King Crimson includes an eight-minute instrumental composition titled "The Sheltering Sky."
- The 1983 album Synchronicity by the Police includes a song called "Tea in the Sahara", the lyrics of which contain the phrase "beneath the sheltering sky" and are based on the story of the three sisters and the prince as described in the first chapter of the book.
- The 1992 album Beyond the Sky by Omar Faruk Tekbilek was inspired by the film version of The Sheltering Sky.
- The first song on Neurosis's album Enemy of the Sun opens with the following sample from the movie adaptation.
[edit] Popular Quote
"Because we don't know when we will die, we get to think of life as an inexhaustible well. Yet everything happens only a certain number of times, and a very small number really. How many more times will you remember a certain afternoon of your childhood, an afternoon that is so deeply a part of your being that you can't even conceive of your life without it? Perhaps four, five times more, perhaps not even that. How many more times will you watch the full moon rise? Perhaps 20. And yet it all seems limitless."
[edit] Trivia
- In an interview just prior to his death, actor Brandon Lee, best known for his portrayal of Eric Draven in the 1994 film The Crow, quoted the above passage which he had chosen for his wedding invitations; It is now inscribed on his tombstone.
[edit] External links
- After his death, the literary and musical heirs of the estate of Paul and Jane Bowles established the official site, The Authorized Paul Bowles Web Site.
- The Sheltering Sky at the Internet Movie Database
