Set mainly in Uzbekistan between 1900 & 1980 The Railway introduces to us the inhabitants of the small town of Gilas on the ancient Silk Route Among those whose stories we hear are Mefody-Jurisprudence the town's alcoholic intellectual; Father Ioann a Russian priest; Kara-Musayev the Younger the chief of police; & Umarali-Moneybags the old moneylender Their colourful lives offer a unique & comic picture of a little-known land populated by outgoing Mullahs incoming Bolsheviks & a plethora of Uzbeks Russians Persians Jews Koreans Tatars & Gypsies At the heart of both the town & the novel stands the railway station
- a source of income & influence & a connection to the greater world beyond the town Rich & picaresque The Railway chronicles the dramatic changes felt throughout Central Asia in the early twentieth century