Book description
Sir Alfred Dreyfus is in jail, innocent of the charges against him,
guilty of a lifetime of denial.
Headmaster of one of Britain s most prestigious schools, knighted for
his services to education, he has built a distinguished career whilst
carefully concealing his Jewish roots. When he is falsely imprisoned for
a horrific crime, he realises it is not just his enemies who have
difficulty with his identity. Bernice Rubens (1929-2004) was born in
Cardiff, Wales in July 1928. She began writing at the age of 35, when
her children started nursery school. Her second novel, Madame Sousatzka
(1962), was filmed by John Schlesinger, with Shirley MacLaine in the
leading role, in 1988. Her fourth novel, The Elected Member
, won the 1970 Booker prize. She was shortlisted for the same prize
again in 1978 for A Five Year Sentence.
Her last novel, The Sergeants Tale
, was published in 2003. She was an honorary vice-president of
International PEN and served as a Booker judge in 1986. Bernice Rubens
died in 2004 aged 76.
