''Marx Returns'' is the

debut novel A debut novel is the first novel a novelist publishes. Debut novels are often the author's first opportunity to make an impact on the publishing industry, and thus the success or failure of a debut novel can affect the ability of the author to p ...

by the British writer and filmmaker

Jason Barker Jason Barker (born 1971) is a British theorist of contemporary French philosophy, a film director, screenwriter and producer. He is a professor of cultural studies at Kyung Hee University in the Graduate School of British and American Language an ...

. It tells the story of the German philosopher Karl Marx and his struggle to complete his magnum opus ''

Capital Capital may refer to: Common uses * Capital city, a municipality of primary status ** List of national capital cities * Capital letter, an upper-case letter Economics and social sciences * Capital (economics), the durable produced goods used fo ...

''.

Reception

Reviewing ''Marx Returns'' in the '' Los Angeles Review of Books'',

Nina Power Nina Power is an English writer and philosopher. She is a senior editor of and columnist for the online magazine '' Compact''. Power received her PhD in philosophy from Middlesex University on the topic of humanism and antihumanism in post ...

described it as "an imaginative, uplifting, and sometimes disturbing alternative history". Writing for '' The Australian'', Peter Beilharz declared that "The story that Barker tells is incredibly witty, clever, and creative. It is amusing and entertaining as well as instructive." Barker discussed his novel at the

British Library The British Library is the national library of the United Kingdom and is one of the largest libraries in the world. It is estimated to contain between 170 and 200 million items from many countries. As a legal deposit library, the British ...

’s Karl Marx bicentennial event on 5 May 2018. Other invited speakers were

Clive Coleman Clive Coleman (born October 1961) is an English barrister turned journalist, who, from 2010 to 2020, has been the BBC News Legal Correspondent. He is also a playwright, film and sitcom writer. Early Years Coleman grew up in North London attendin ...

and

Richard Bean Richard Anthony Bean (born 11 June 1956) is an English playwright. Early years Born in East Hull, Bean was educated at Hull Grammar School, and then studied social psychology at Loughborough University, graduating with a 2:1 BSc Hons. He the ...

, writers of the 2017 West End play ''

Young Marx The correct place of Karl Marx's early writings within his system as a whole has been a matter of great controversy. Some believe there is a ''break'' in Marx's development that divides his thought into two periods: the "Young Marx" is said to be ...

'', along with "the team behind Raoul Peck’s film ''

The Young Karl Marx ''The Young Karl Marx'' (french: Le jeune Karl Marx; german: Der junge Karl Marx) is a 2017 historical drama film about Karl Marx, directed by Haitian filmmaker and political activist Raoul Peck, co-written by Peck and Pascal Bonitzer, and starrin ...

''". The event was moderated by Eleanor Marx biographer Rachel Holmes. In an interview with Marx200, a German commemorative website set up by the Rosa Luxemburg Foundation, Barker observes that "''Marx Returns'' is not a philosophical novel" and is "an adventure story."

References

External links

* 2018 British novels Works about Karl Marx Zero Books 2018 debut novels {{2010s-hist-novel-stub