This book has two purposes. The first is to entertain, by presenting a story told in vivid images. The second purpose is to satirise, with the seriousness and occasional ferocity with belong to that style of writing. The novel focuses on three Englishmen of the British army, who find themselves suddenly astray against a background of unidentifiable mountains in Central Asia. What befalls them makes at the same time a picaresque tale of excitement and a bitter comment on certain aspects of our encounter with Asia.
