The Emperor by Ryszard Kapuscinski

After the deposition of Haile Selassie in 1974, which ended the ancient rule of the Abyssinian monarchy, Ryszard Kapuscinski travelled to Ethiopia and sought out surviving courtiers to tell their stories. Here, their eloquent and ironic voices depict the lavish, corrupt world they had known - from the rituals, hierarchies and intrigues at court to the vagaries of a ruler who maintained absolute power over his impoverished people. They describe his inexorable downfall as the Ethiopian military approach, strange omens appear in the sky and courtiers vanish, until only the Emperor and his valet remain in the deserted palace, awaiting their fate. Dramatic and mesmerising, The Emperor is one of the great works of reportage and a haunting epitaph on the last moments of a dying regime.

- Google

The 139th greatest nonfiction book of all time


This book is on the following lists:

  1. - 8th on The Ideal Library (Book)
  2. - The New York Public Library's Books of the Century (New York Public Library)

Buy This Book

Name Binding Sales Rank Lowest New Lowest Used Published
By Ryszard Kapuscinski The Emperor (Reissue) Paperback 6713095 $25.19 $14.53 1989
The Emperor: Downfall of an Autocrat Hardcover 1421884 $49.76 $1.86
The Emperor: Downfall of an Autocrat (Penguin Classics) Paperback 1596100 $5.25 $3.33
Emperor Paperback 4843386 $7.00 $0.01 1984
The Emperor: Downfall of an Autocrat (Chinese Edition) Paperback 6247654 $9.60 2018
The Shadow of the Sun Paperback 312416 $8.21 $1.96 2002
Another Day of Life Paperback 973373 $7.98 $2.04 2001
The Emperor: Downfall of an Autocrat Kindle Edition 337452 $11.99 1983
The Emperor: Downfall of an Autocrat Paperback 231569 $10.94 $1.59 1989