16 h 47 minAudiobook11 minSummaryRead it, hear it, the 15-minute summary, and print and large print at costPaperback · 6 × 9 in · printing soonHardcover · 6 × 9 in · printing soonAbout this book
What happens when the desire for more threatens the bond between two brothers?
In The Prodigal Son, Hall Caine takes the old parable of a son who leaves home and squanders his gift into the far north. Between the bleak landscape of Iceland and the wider world of Denmark, he builds a family drama around two brothers whose shared beginnings do not make them the same men.
Love between the brothers comes under strain from rivalry, secrets and wrongs done in the name of want. Caine gives these struggles room to grow through dramatic scenes, coincidence and conflict. The stakes are personal and moral: what happens to a family bond when desire pulls against love, and wanting more begins to cost too much?
What you’ll discover
- Brothers pulled apart Explore how men raised in one home can grow apart under the pressure of desire.
- The harsh northern landscape Enter an Iceland whose bleak landscape and harsh beauty give the family drama its character.
- A familiar parable enlarged Discover a long family tale built around the old story of departure and squandered gifts.
- Love under strain Feel the tension as rivalry and secrets put a bond between brothers to the test.
- Emotion without restraint Meet a storyteller who embraces big feelings, dramatic conflict and clear moral stakes.
Who will love it
Readers who love family sagas, stories of two brothers, northern landscapes and strong feeling, or who enjoy a moral drama where music, money and love pull one man in different directions.
What’s inside
The key ideas, in the 15-minute summary
- A Morning Ride and Two Old Friends
- Four Children, Four Natures
- A Quiet Courtship Ruined by a Return
- The Rock, the Letter and the Contract
- The Beginning of a Slow Betrayal
- Marriage, Journey and Loss of a Child
- What Followed: Ruin, Exile and a Hidden Name
- What the Story Is Really About
- How the Story Is Told
Who’s who
- Magnus StephensonThe Governor's elder son, big, slow and honest, who loves Thora and will give up almost anything for the people he cares about.
- Oscar StephensonThe Governor's younger son, charming and gifted with music, who wants to be loved by everyone and cannot bear to disappoint anyone.
- Thora NeilsenThe Factor's elder daughter, gentle and trusting, who wants only to be loved and to make everyone around her happy.
- Helga NeilsenThora's sister, dark, clever and dazzling, who wants fame, luxury and the full attention of the man she wants.
- AnnaThe Governor's plain, kind wife, who mothers all four children and tries to keep her family together against the odds.
- Stephen MagnussonThe proud, upright Governor of Iceland, who loves his younger son too well and holds fast to the old order.
- Factor Oscar NeilsenThe wealthy merchant and lifelong friend of the Governor, thrifty and shrewd, who plans his daughter's marriage as a business arrangement.
- Aunt MargretThe Factor's sister, sharp-tongued and warm-hearted, who spouts proverbs and fiercely protects Thora.
Formats and delivery
- eBook
- On your phone, tablet, computer or Kindle, with the type as large as you like.
- Large-print eBook
- The same book in bigger, clearer type, from the first page.
- Audiobook
- 16 h 47 min, complete, read by Lucas Linden.
- 15-minute summary
- The key ideas in about 11 minutes, to read or to hear.
- Paperback
- 6 × 9 in. Printing soon: leave your email under Paperback or Hardcover above.
- Hardcover
- 6 × 9 in. Printing soon: leave your email under Paperback or Hardcover above.
- Large print paperback
- 8.5 × 11 in. Printing soon: leave your email under Paperback or Hardcover above.
- Large print hardcover
- 8.5 × 11 in. Printing soon: leave your email under Paperback or Hardcover above.
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Le Fils prodigue
by Hall Caine · 1904
Two brothers love one girl in Iceland, and one of them gives her up in a way that changes every life around him.
Medium level10–20 hours to read25 languages
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In short
The Prodigal Son is a novel by Hall Caine, set in Iceland in the nineteenth century. It follows two brothers, the steady Magnus and the gifted, charming Oscar, and the women they love in a small country where families, trade and politics are tightly bound together.
From the 15-minute summary · Key idea 1
A Morning Ride and Two Old Friends
The story opens on the day of the sheep gathering at Thingvellir. Thora Neilsen, the merchant's daughter, wakes before dawn and cries out that she has overslept. Her aunt Margret grumbles good-naturedly from the next room. She is engaged to Magnus, the mountain king of the gathering, but his brother Oscar has come home from England and arrives with two ponies to take her to the farm.
Aunt Margret does not like what she sees. She warns Thora that two dogs at one bone seldom agree, and she says that Jacob, Cain and the brothers of Joseph were all brothers too. Thora laughs it off, but the color in her face tells another story.
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What is The Prodigal Son by Hall Caine about?
It follows two Icelandic brothers, steady Magnus and gifted Oscar, and the sisters they love. A broken engagement and a sacrifice lead to years of loss, exile and a fortune hidden under a false name.
Is The Prodigal Son a retelling of the Bible parable?
It draws on the parable of the son who squanders his gift and returns home, but it is a full novel with its own characters. It also asks about the brother who stays behind and bears the costs.
Where and when is The Prodigal Son set?
The story takes place in Iceland in the nineteenth century, in the capital Reykjavik and on the plain of Thingvellir. It shows barter trade giving way to cash and the Governor's office giving way to a minister.
The author
Hall Caine
1853–1931 · British novelist and playwright
Hall Caine (1853–1931) was a British novelist and playwright. He was born in Runcorn, England, and lived in Liverpool, London and the Isle of Man. His novels include The Deemster (1887), The Manxman (1894), The Christian (1897) and The Prodigal Son (1904). He died on the Isle of Man.
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