Ted Chiang, one of the most acclaimed short story writers of the past two decades has graced us with an 11,500 word novelette, The Merchant and the Alchemist’s Gate, which we’ll be releasing as a small hardcover this summer.

In medieval Baghdad, a penniless man is brought before the most powerful man in the world, the caliph himself, to tell his story. It begins with a walk in the bazaar, but soon grows into a tale unlike any other told in the caliph’s empire. It’s a story that includes not just buried treasure and a band of thieves, but also men haunted by their past and others trapped by their future; it includes not just a beloved wife and a veiled seductress, but also long journeys taken by caravan and even longer ones taken with a single step. Above all, it’s a story about recognizing the will of Allah and accepting it, no matter what form it takes.

Posted on Wednesday, February 21st, 2007 at 6:32 am.