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Sparrow
Told from the perspective of an enslaved boy being raised in a Roman brothel, a stunning literary historical novel of identity, family, suffering, and freedom
In a brothel on the Spanish coast during the waning years of the Roman Empire, a young enslaved boy of unknown parentage is growing up. His world is a kitchen, then an herb-scented garden, followed by a loud and dangerous tavern, and finally, the mysterious upstairs where the “wolves” do their business.
The wolves, named after the muses and coming from across the vast empire, are Sparrow’s surrogate family. They are his mothers and his sisters, his guides in a rough life, his solace from it. When he is not being told stories by his beloved Euterpe, he runs errands for her lover, the cook, while trying to avoid the blows of their brutal overseer or the machinations of the chief wolf, Melpomene. But a hard fate awaits Sparrow, one that involves suffering, murder, mayhem, and the scattering of the little community that has been his whole world.
Through meticulous research and bold imagination, James Hynes brings the entirety of a Roman city to vivid life, recreating old Pagan Rome as its codes and morals give way before the new religion of Christianity, and introduces readers to one of the most powerfully affecting and memorable characters of recent fiction. Sparrow is an enthralling, heartbreaking novel of identity, endurance, and love in a dangerous and changing time.
In a brothel on the Spanish coast during the waning years of the Roman Empire, a young enslaved boy of unknown parentage is growing up. His world is a kitchen, then an herb-scented garden, followed by a loud and dangerous tavern, and finally, the mysterious upstairs where the “wolves” do their business.
The wolves, named after the muses and coming from across the vast empire, are Sparrow’s surrogate family. They are his mothers and his sisters, his guides in a rough life, his solace from it. When he is not being told stories by his beloved Euterpe, he runs errands for her lover, the cook, while trying to avoid the blows of their brutal overseer or the machinations of the chief wolf, Melpomene. But a hard fate awaits Sparrow, one that involves suffering, murder, mayhem, and the scattering of the little community that has been his whole world.
Through meticulous research and bold imagination, James Hynes brings the entirety of a Roman city to vivid life, recreating old Pagan Rome as its codes and morals give way before the new religion of Christianity, and introduces readers to one of the most powerfully affecting and memorable characters of recent fiction. Sparrow is an enthralling, heartbreaking novel of identity, endurance, and love in a dangerous and changing time.
394 pages, Hardcover
First published May 4, 2023
193 people are currently reading
10066 people want to read
About the author
James Hynes
33 books145 followersJames Hynes’ essays and book reviews have appeared in the New York Times, the Washington Post, Boston Review, and Salon.
A native of Michigan, he attended the University of Michigan and the Iowa Writers' Workshop. He has taught fiction writing at the University of Iowa, the University of Michigan, Miami University, Grinnell College, and the University of Texas. He lives in Austin, Texas.
A native of Michigan, he attended the University of Michigan and the Iowa Writers' Workshop. He has taught fiction writing at the University of Iowa, the University of Michigan, Miami University, Grinnell College, and the University of Texas. He lives in Austin, Texas.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 434 reviews
November 18, 2022
This book immediately reminded me of a more elevated version of The Wolf Den, though this book fulfilled my desire for more in-depth, well-rounded characters, and it has such rich world-building to boot!
As a reader, I got a sense of the place and time that the book is set in, largely due to the rich writing. Each time Sparrow ran to the fountain to fill the buckets, went to the marketplace, or ran his errands, I could very clearly envision the streets of Carthago Nova. I also felt the odd dynamic as the paganic Roman Empire started to crumble as it transitioned towards Christianity. While Hynes was successful at crafting a rich, lifelike world, I did feel that his descriptive writing slowed the pace down in certain areas, particularly at the start of the book where it took a while for the story to get going.
Hynes did a wonderful job at fleshing out the main cast of characters. Sparrow and the Wolves felt complex and lifelike. I even had a very small soft spot for Audo -well until that awful scene where he was initiating Sparrow. into his new role. The book is not a light read, which isn't entirely unexpected given that it's set in a brothel, but I wasn't expecting it to be as graphic as it was at certain points. I understood why it had to be done -although set in the final days of the Roman Empire, the plight of Sparrow and the Wolves is reminiscent of modern-day trafficking victims. Also, without the graphic scenes, it's unlikely that Sparrow's disassociation would have come across as believable (and Hynes did a great job at realistically depicting a trauma response).
As the book drew to a close, my heart broke for all of the characters, and I wanted to give them all a better outcome. With that said, I was conflicted by the ending and was ready to rate the book down for it. Given what the elder Sparrow tells us about his future circumstances, we get very little information on how he actually got there. We don't even know how he learns to read and write! On reflection, I wouldn't necessarily change the ending, but I would let the elder Sparrow pepper us with more information throughout the book on how he got to a place in life where he could write his life story. After getting to know the younger Sparrow so well, I would have liked a more definitive sense of closure.
Ultimately, this was a beautifully written character-driven plot, and I look forward to its release next year.
Thank you to NetGalley and especially PanMacMillan for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.
As a reader, I got a sense of the place and time that the book is set in, largely due to the rich writing. Each time Sparrow ran to the fountain to fill the buckets, went to the marketplace, or ran his errands, I could very clearly envision the streets of Carthago Nova. I also felt the odd dynamic as the paganic Roman Empire started to crumble as it transitioned towards Christianity. While Hynes was successful at crafting a rich, lifelike world, I did feel that his descriptive writing slowed the pace down in certain areas, particularly at the start of the book where it took a while for the story to get going.
Hynes did a wonderful job at fleshing out the main cast of characters. Sparrow and the Wolves felt complex and lifelike. I even had a very small soft spot for Audo -well until that awful scene where he was initiating Sparrow. into his new role. The book is not a light read, which isn't entirely unexpected given that it's set in a brothel, but I wasn't expecting it to be as graphic as it was at certain points. I understood why it had to be done -although set in the final days of the Roman Empire, the plight of Sparrow and the Wolves is reminiscent of modern-day trafficking victims. Also, without the graphic scenes, it's unlikely that Sparrow's disassociation would have come across as believable (and Hynes did a great job at realistically depicting a trauma response).
As the book drew to a close, my heart broke for all of the characters, and I wanted to give them all a better outcome. With that said, I was conflicted by the ending and was ready to rate the book down for it. Given what the elder Sparrow tells us about his future circumstances, we get very little information on how he actually got there. We don't even know how he learns to read and write! On reflection, I wouldn't necessarily change the ending, but I would let the elder Sparrow pepper us with more information throughout the book on how he got to a place in life where he could write his life story. After getting to know the younger Sparrow so well, I would have liked a more definitive sense of closure.
Ultimately, this was a beautifully written character-driven plot, and I look forward to its release next year.
Thank you to NetGalley and especially PanMacMillan for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.
April 24, 2023
Disclaimer - if you are easily shocked or offended this book isn't for you! However if you want a thought provoking and authentic feeling story following a slave in the Roman empire then this is going to drag you into that world and show you it's dark underbelly.
Set in a brothel we follow a slave boy as he grows, from kitchen hand, to dogsbody to Wolf. He has no name and instead is known by different things by all those around him, whether that be Pusus/Antiochus/Little One/Mouse/Antinous. Of all his names he most associates with Sparrow.
The setting of the story is very rich and feels so well researched without drowning you in facts. Sparrow's naivety is so endearing, and it is heart breaking that you can see where his story is going long before he can. And even more heartbreaking as that naivety is broken.
As you would expect with brothel life large portions of the story are really quite graphic once Sparrow takes on roles upstairs. There is no cutting away at the bedroom door (or more aptly cell curtain) and leaving the audience to imagine what may be happening. We are made to care about the characters and then see them defiled and used by all those around them. Despite this we also get to see how they care for, and love, one another and the lengths they will go to in order to protect those they care about.
I think this book is going to stay with me for a long time.
Set in a brothel we follow a slave boy as he grows, from kitchen hand, to dogsbody to Wolf. He has no name and instead is known by different things by all those around him, whether that be Pusus/Antiochus/Little One/Mouse/Antinous. Of all his names he most associates with Sparrow.
The setting of the story is very rich and feels so well researched without drowning you in facts. Sparrow's naivety is so endearing, and it is heart breaking that you can see where his story is going long before he can. And even more heartbreaking as that naivety is broken.
As you would expect with brothel life large portions of the story are really quite graphic once Sparrow takes on roles upstairs. There is no cutting away at the bedroom door (or more aptly cell curtain) and leaving the audience to imagine what may be happening. We are made to care about the characters and then see them defiled and used by all those around them. Despite this we also get to see how they care for, and love, one another and the lengths they will go to in order to protect those they care about.
I think this book is going to stay with me for a long time.
November 9, 2023
~ 2,5*
Setting und Schreibstil mochte ich, aber inhaltlich fand ich es eher schwach. Irgendwie bin ich auch mit einer ganz anderen Erwartungshaltung an das Buch herangegangen und habe nicht wirklich verstanden, was der Autor mir mit der Geschichte eigentlich sagen will. Sehr schade.
Setting und Schreibstil mochte ich, aber inhaltlich fand ich es eher schwach. Irgendwie bin ich auch mit einer ganz anderen Erwartungshaltung an das Buch herangegangen und habe nicht wirklich verstanden, was der Autor mir mit der Geschichte eigentlich sagen will. Sehr schade.
December 29, 2023
3.5 stars.
For fans of The Wolf Den, Sparrow is an unflinchingly honest telling of the life of slaves forced to work as prostitutes in Ancient Rome.
Unlike Elodie Harper’s trilogy, Sparrow features a young boy who starts off as a kitchen slave but is eventually required to become a male “wolf.”
The novel vacillated between moments of humor, tenderness, and brutality. It is not for the faint of heart. But it feels sincere and realistic and is worth the read. The boy of many names and no name of his own will stay with you for a long time after you reach the final page.
For fans of The Wolf Den, Sparrow is an unflinchingly honest telling of the life of slaves forced to work as prostitutes in Ancient Rome.
Unlike Elodie Harper’s trilogy, Sparrow features a young boy who starts off as a kitchen slave but is eventually required to become a male “wolf.”
The novel vacillated between moments of humor, tenderness, and brutality. It is not for the faint of heart. But it feels sincere and realistic and is worth the read. The boy of many names and no name of his own will stay with you for a long time after you reach the final page.
July 9, 2023
Very slow, painstakingly detailed and graphically violent, you know more than you care to know about life as a slave in a brothel in Spain in the waning days of the Roman empire, as it transitioned to Christianity.
Written as a memoir later in life by the child protagonist, the 475 pages cover only a couple of years of his early life, leaving you in total mystery as to how he reached old age. And then it ends abruptly - and somehow too conveniently.
It is a depressing read, with very few redeeming characters, and you have to endure regular descriptions of abuse.
Written as a memoir later in life by the child protagonist, the 475 pages cover only a couple of years of his early life, leaving you in total mystery as to how he reached old age. And then it ends abruptly - and somehow too conveniently.
It is a depressing read, with very few redeeming characters, and you have to endure regular descriptions of abuse.
October 6, 2023
Format: audiobook ~ Narrator: Theo Solomon
Content: 4 stars ~ Narration: 4.5 stars
Complete audiobook review
Sparrow is a story of an orphaned and nameless boy brought up in a brothel on the Spanish coast in the years of the Roman Empire. Others call him simply Pusus (boy), Little One, or Mouse. But he likes to call himself Sparrow. He doesn’t know where he comes from or who his parents are. Raised by wolves in an environment not suited for a small child. Wolves are prostitutes in a brothel named after muses. Their world is everything he knows. They are all he has, and he learns from them. Tender Euterpe and her lover, down-to-earth cook, ambitious Melpomene, their bodyguard, rough Audo: they are his family.
The novel carefully and thoroughly depicts the harsh life of Roman slaves. Written in a brutal and painfully honest narrative. Among others, it contains explicit descriptions of rape and child abuse. So this novel won’t be for every reader, I’m sure.
Still, Sparrow is a novel worth reading. This novel transports the reader to the brutal times of the Roman Empire. It is a novel about endurance, love, and pain. This is a slower-paced but precise character study of a child slave in the Roman Empire.
Thanks to Dreamscape Media for the advanced copy and this opportunity! This is a voluntary review and all opinions are my own.
Content: 4 stars ~ Narration: 4.5 stars
Complete audiobook review
Sparrow is a story of an orphaned and nameless boy brought up in a brothel on the Spanish coast in the years of the Roman Empire. Others call him simply Pusus (boy), Little One, or Mouse. But he likes to call himself Sparrow. He doesn’t know where he comes from or who his parents are. Raised by wolves in an environment not suited for a small child. Wolves are prostitutes in a brothel named after muses. Their world is everything he knows. They are all he has, and he learns from them. Tender Euterpe and her lover, down-to-earth cook, ambitious Melpomene, their bodyguard, rough Audo: they are his family.
The novel carefully and thoroughly depicts the harsh life of Roman slaves. Written in a brutal and painfully honest narrative. Among others, it contains explicit descriptions of rape and child abuse. So this novel won’t be for every reader, I’m sure.
Still, Sparrow is a novel worth reading. This novel transports the reader to the brutal times of the Roman Empire. It is a novel about endurance, love, and pain. This is a slower-paced but precise character study of a child slave in the Roman Empire.
Thanks to Dreamscape Media for the advanced copy and this opportunity! This is a voluntary review and all opinions are my own.
January 7, 2023
Мальчика растлевают все кому не лень. И кому лень – тоже.
July 8, 2023
A grittier darker story than The Wolf Den by Eloise Harper. I felt slightly removed from the main character and the story moved at a very slow pace, but was convincingly detailed. Many thanks to Netgalley for an arc of this book.
September 14, 2023
>>"Die Welt", fährt Focaria fort, "teilt sich in freie Menschen, die einen Namen haben, und Sklaven, die keinen haben, weil sie Dinge und keine Menschen sind. ..."<<
"Ich, Sperling" von James Hynes, aus dem amerikanischen Englisch von Ute Leibmann übersetzt, erzählt die Geschichte eines namenlosen Waisenjungen, der im 4. Jahrhundert n.Chr. im spanischen Carthago Nova in einem Bordell aufwächst.
Während er schon als kleiner Junge die Härte seines, so wird ihm immer wieder eingebläut unbedeutenden Lebens zu spüren bekommt, so nimmt sein Leben mit zunehmenden Alter noch eine ganz andere Wende... Denn was als Küchenhilfe beginnt, entwickelt sich zu einer so schmerzvollen Narbe, die in sein herz, in seine Seele gerissen wird, die wohl ewig wärt... Und doch sind es auch besondere Beziehungen, die vielleicht ein bisschen Schmerz leichter zu tragen machen.
Für mich ist es unsagbar schwer dieses Buch in Worte zu fassen- vor allem die richtigen Worte zu finden. Die Geschichte wird uns aus Sicht des Mannes, der damals als Junge seinen Lebensweg beginnt erzählt, und das machte es für mich persönlich nur noch schmerzvoller und so greifbar.
Durch die Buchbeschreibung ist natürlich ersichtlich, in welchen Kreisen wir uns als Leser hier aufhalten, dementsprechend kann man sich einen teil dessen denken, der auf einen zukommen wird. Und doch hat mich die Intensität der Geschichte sehr getroffen und mir ein Schicksal, von denen es damals wahrscheinlich unglaublich viele dieser Art gab, nahegebracht.
So schmerzvoll diese Geschichte auch war, so ist sie aber eben auch ganz besonders und konnte mich nicht nur während des Lesens sehr fesseln, sondern hat mich auch im Nachhinein noch lange beschäftigt...
Wer schmerzvolle, gewaltvolle Lebensgeschichten in Form eines Romans ertragen kann, dem kann ich "Ich, Sperling" sehr ans Herz legen! 💖📖
"Ich, Sperling" von James Hynes, aus dem amerikanischen Englisch von Ute Leibmann übersetzt, erzählt die Geschichte eines namenlosen Waisenjungen, der im 4. Jahrhundert n.Chr. im spanischen Carthago Nova in einem Bordell aufwächst.
Während er schon als kleiner Junge die Härte seines, so wird ihm immer wieder eingebläut unbedeutenden Lebens zu spüren bekommt, so nimmt sein Leben mit zunehmenden Alter noch eine ganz andere Wende... Denn was als Küchenhilfe beginnt, entwickelt sich zu einer so schmerzvollen Narbe, die in sein herz, in seine Seele gerissen wird, die wohl ewig wärt... Und doch sind es auch besondere Beziehungen, die vielleicht ein bisschen Schmerz leichter zu tragen machen.
Für mich ist es unsagbar schwer dieses Buch in Worte zu fassen- vor allem die richtigen Worte zu finden. Die Geschichte wird uns aus Sicht des Mannes, der damals als Junge seinen Lebensweg beginnt erzählt, und das machte es für mich persönlich nur noch schmerzvoller und so greifbar.
Durch die Buchbeschreibung ist natürlich ersichtlich, in welchen Kreisen wir uns als Leser hier aufhalten, dementsprechend kann man sich einen teil dessen denken, der auf einen zukommen wird. Und doch hat mich die Intensität der Geschichte sehr getroffen und mir ein Schicksal, von denen es damals wahrscheinlich unglaublich viele dieser Art gab, nahegebracht.
So schmerzvoll diese Geschichte auch war, so ist sie aber eben auch ganz besonders und konnte mich nicht nur während des Lesens sehr fesseln, sondern hat mich auch im Nachhinein noch lange beschäftigt...
Wer schmerzvolle, gewaltvolle Lebensgeschichten in Form eines Romans ertragen kann, dem kann ich "Ich, Sperling" sehr ans Herz legen! 💖📖
December 12, 2025
SPOILERS AHEAD!
I’m going to start with the things I enjoyed about this book, because it’s not entirely bad. The best part about this book is the writing itself, especially setting/place-writing and the inclusion of well-researched historical elements that are integrated skillfully. The slow, slice-of-life, style is something I enjoyed personally.
I will say, this book is definitely very graphic and not for the faint of heart.
I am not sensitive to these topics in the slightest, but the book was just so heavy-handed and gratuitous with the sexual violence, I found myself asking the question, why? What purpose does it serve, apart from shock value? I doubt the extensive depth and variety of rape scenes is needed, and it certainly is an interesting choice.
At times, there is a blur between portraying and pornifying scenes. Certain descriptors, interactions and thoughts in these scenes are more reminiscent of a full grown man, rather than a boy. Specifically, in the scene between Melpomene and Sparrow, where she ‘teaches him’ how to be a wolf, the dialogue and physical reactions seem to blur that line, especially lines like “‘Before I answer that,’ she says, laying her warm hand on my thigh, ‘I’m going to do something for you first.’” and “in almost the same place on my body, the silkiest pleasure I've ever felt”.
“As I feel my own pleasure swelling unstoppably between my legs, I wonder what I look like, but Sparrow is nowhere to be found, and instead I sit with my knees spread and my hands gripping the edge of the seat, looking out of my own eyes at a woman's head bobbing up and down between my legs. I am confused and excited and afraid all at once.” bffr. This does not read like a child being raped, and the fact that it’s not clear? Astounding. I literally can’t put into words how baffled I am.
This, accompanied by scenes like Sparrow walking in on Focaria and Euterpe having sex, which is an interesting choice to introduce their relationship like that. Not that it itself is bad, but the connotations attached considering the already blurred between portraying and pornifying is something to consider.
The perspective is also something I found lacking. There are a few times where this child seems to have adult/modernized views on sex, seen when he’s suddenly disgusted by Euturpe after finding out she is a wolf/what wolves do. It’s a very interesting thought process that reads more akin to a 21st century adult man, rather than a 10 year old boy from Ancient Rome. This disgust might have made sense if Sparrow was older/had experience with women and sex, giving him a reason to see her as dirty now. But he’s a child, and it doesn’t make sense. The fact you could make him older, and nothing would change about his perspective speaks volumes. His age should color every thought and experience he has, and yet it doesn’t. It’s disappointing, honestly, as if this perspective were executed well and really got inside the psychology of how a child perceives these events, it would’ve been so good.
Now, my main beef with this book is the characterisation of the women. These women are created with an illusion of depth, and it’s disappointing.
Not to be that person, but it definitely falls into the category of men writing women, which is interesting considering most of the characters in this book are women. They tend to fall into the stereotypical perfect pious mother figure, and the evil bitchy woman. Take the three main women for example, Focaria, Melpomene and Euterpe. Euterpe is seen as pious and naive and hopeful, always being framed as the victim. Maybe she’s supposed to symbolize hope of a future, but it’s in poor taste that she’s also the mother. It reads very shallow and stereotypical, lacking nuance. And Melpomene? Come on, do I even need to say this. She reads like the mean business woman from every hallmark movie ever. Both her and Focaria seem evil for the sake of being evil, or committing cruel acts for the sake of it/or for very shallow reasons that lend themselves to the illusion of depth, rather than actually giving itself to them.
Especially since Melpomene is supposed to understand the wolves, yet her lack of empathy is an example of how shallow the characterization is in this book. I’m sorry, but being a bitch or ‘business-forward’ cannot be the whole of a character's personality and goals.
Focaria is the most interesting to me because I feel like so much she could’ve been that she wasn’t. That complicated relationship between being a carer for a child, a mother in a sense, but it being forced on you? That love-hate that could’ve been, instead replaced by her being jealous of a child. She spends most of the book being cruel to him, literally attempting to kill him (for something that wasn’t his fault, which she knows wasn't his fault) and then turning around at the end and holding his hand as she skips into the sunset with him? Be for real.
And the ending. I was so disappointed. It was rushed, unsatisfying and didn’t make any sense. I had alot of questions, namely ‘what the fuck is happening’, with crucial details of how Eutrepre escaped, why Foccacia tried to kill him (and abused him frequently in the past) and is now all chummy with him? Which, by the way, doesn’t add depth to her character but rather contradicts everything we know about her. Why they are willing to escape now, and even the simple fact of how Euterpe was able to free Sparrow without any hassle from anyone on the ship. I genuinely thought it was a dying fantasy, until I remembered that he lives until he’s old.
*Edit: It being a 'just a dream' is literally a worse outcome than the above.
I’ve read these other reviews that rehash the blurb and I'm genuinely wondering if we read the same book. All of my personal opinions aside, the ending was objectively terrible. I am genuinely baffled, but mainly just really disappointed.
I think the thing that bothers me most about this book is that I could’ve loved it.
There are so many elements and concepts that could’ve been so good, had so much potential, especially with the excellent prose and historical knowledge/inclusion. The slow, almost slice-of-life style i fucking love, especially in my favourite genre, in one of my favourite periods of history? I’m just disappointed that it sucked.
I’m going to start with the things I enjoyed about this book, because it’s not entirely bad. The best part about this book is the writing itself, especially setting/place-writing and the inclusion of well-researched historical elements that are integrated skillfully. The slow, slice-of-life, style is something I enjoyed personally.
I will say, this book is definitely very graphic and not for the faint of heart.
I am not sensitive to these topics in the slightest, but the book was just so heavy-handed and gratuitous with the sexual violence, I found myself asking the question, why? What purpose does it serve, apart from shock value? I doubt the extensive depth and variety of rape scenes is needed, and it certainly is an interesting choice.
At times, there is a blur between portraying and pornifying scenes. Certain descriptors, interactions and thoughts in these scenes are more reminiscent of a full grown man, rather than a boy. Specifically, in the scene between Melpomene and Sparrow, where she ‘teaches him’ how to be a wolf, the dialogue and physical reactions seem to blur that line, especially lines like “‘Before I answer that,’ she says, laying her warm hand on my thigh, ‘I’m going to do something for you first.’” and “in almost the same place on my body, the silkiest pleasure I've ever felt”.
“As I feel my own pleasure swelling unstoppably between my legs, I wonder what I look like, but Sparrow is nowhere to be found, and instead I sit with my knees spread and my hands gripping the edge of the seat, looking out of my own eyes at a woman's head bobbing up and down between my legs. I am confused and excited and afraid all at once.” bffr. This does not read like a child being raped, and the fact that it’s not clear? Astounding. I literally can’t put into words how baffled I am.
This, accompanied by scenes like Sparrow walking in on Focaria and Euterpe having sex, which is an interesting choice to introduce their relationship like that. Not that it itself is bad, but the connotations attached considering the already blurred between portraying and pornifying is something to consider.
The perspective is also something I found lacking. There are a few times where this child seems to have adult/modernized views on sex, seen when he’s suddenly disgusted by Euturpe after finding out she is a wolf/what wolves do. It’s a very interesting thought process that reads more akin to a 21st century adult man, rather than a 10 year old boy from Ancient Rome. This disgust might have made sense if Sparrow was older/had experience with women and sex, giving him a reason to see her as dirty now. But he’s a child, and it doesn’t make sense. The fact you could make him older, and nothing would change about his perspective speaks volumes. His age should color every thought and experience he has, and yet it doesn’t. It’s disappointing, honestly, as if this perspective were executed well and really got inside the psychology of how a child perceives these events, it would’ve been so good.
Now, my main beef with this book is the characterisation of the women. These women are created with an illusion of depth, and it’s disappointing.
Not to be that person, but it definitely falls into the category of men writing women, which is interesting considering most of the characters in this book are women. They tend to fall into the stereotypical perfect pious mother figure, and the evil bitchy woman. Take the three main women for example, Focaria, Melpomene and Euterpe. Euterpe is seen as pious and naive and hopeful, always being framed as the victim. Maybe she’s supposed to symbolize hope of a future, but it’s in poor taste that she’s also the mother. It reads very shallow and stereotypical, lacking nuance. And Melpomene? Come on, do I even need to say this. She reads like the mean business woman from every hallmark movie ever. Both her and Focaria seem evil for the sake of being evil, or committing cruel acts for the sake of it/or for very shallow reasons that lend themselves to the illusion of depth, rather than actually giving itself to them.
Especially since Melpomene is supposed to understand the wolves, yet her lack of empathy is an example of how shallow the characterization is in this book. I’m sorry, but being a bitch or ‘business-forward’ cannot be the whole of a character's personality and goals.
Focaria is the most interesting to me because I feel like so much she could’ve been that she wasn’t. That complicated relationship between being a carer for a child, a mother in a sense, but it being forced on you? That love-hate that could’ve been, instead replaced by her being jealous of a child. She spends most of the book being cruel to him, literally attempting to kill him (for something that wasn’t his fault, which she knows wasn't his fault) and then turning around at the end and holding his hand as she skips into the sunset with him? Be for real.
And the ending. I was so disappointed. It was rushed, unsatisfying and didn’t make any sense. I had alot of questions, namely ‘what the fuck is happening’, with crucial details of how Eutrepre escaped, why Foccacia tried to kill him (and abused him frequently in the past) and is now all chummy with him? Which, by the way, doesn’t add depth to her character but rather contradicts everything we know about her. Why they are willing to escape now, and even the simple fact of how Euterpe was able to free Sparrow without any hassle from anyone on the ship. I genuinely thought it was a dying fantasy, until I remembered that he lives until he’s old.
*Edit: It being a 'just a dream' is literally a worse outcome than the above.
I’ve read these other reviews that rehash the blurb and I'm genuinely wondering if we read the same book. All of my personal opinions aside, the ending was objectively terrible. I am genuinely baffled, but mainly just really disappointed.
I think the thing that bothers me most about this book is that I could’ve loved it.
There are so many elements and concepts that could’ve been so good, had so much potential, especially with the excellent prose and historical knowledge/inclusion. The slow, almost slice-of-life style i fucking love, especially in my favourite genre, in one of my favourite periods of history? I’m just disappointed that it sucked.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
September 16, 2023
no way the end isn’t a hallucination what
August 28, 2023
As this story opens, its protagonist doesn't have a name. He's called "pupus," Latin for "boy." Later, he will be called Antinous, but the name he comes to like best is Sparrow.
Sparrow is enslaved in the town of Carthago Nova, in present-day Spain, in the waning years of the Roman Empire. We first meet him as a small boy, just coming to consciousness. He doesn't remember his parents, if he even knew them. Maybe they were also enslaved and he was taken from them. Or maybe they sold him into slavery. Or maybe he was taken as a slave in war. His whole world consists of the kitchen and walled garden of the tavern/brothel where he is enslaved, learning to help in the kitchen. He has never seen anything else that he can remember. This limited world and limited memory of a small child is very well done, and drew me right into the story.
The cook, Focaria, and one of the prostitutes (or "wolves"), Euterpe, serve as surrogate mothers to little Sparrow. Euterpe is nurturing and gentle, Focaria strict and impatient. The brothel manager, Audo, is brutal to the slaves, but obsequious to the owner of the brothel (and its denizens), Cadilus.
As Sparrow grows a little older, he is given the job of going into the town to fetch water and go shopping. At first, he is terrified, never having left the kitchen or garden. And he has to learn to defend himself against boys who taunt him and shopkeepers who try to cheat him. But he learns quickly.
Eventually, Cadilus and Audo decide to put Sparrow to the obvious use of an adolescent boy living at a brothel. And Euterpe and Focaria begin to consider escape.
This is a beautifully written book about a brutally ugly life. It's very hard to read at times. But there are fleeting moments of love and pleasure. And, in my opinion, one of the great things about historical fiction is the perspective that it provides on many times and places. This novel of enslaved people in ancient Spain gave me a new perspective on American slavery and, in general, what it means to be completely powerless over your own life. In particular, it was very pointed about why slaves (and other powerless people) learn to tell lies.
My only objection to this book is that the ending came as a complete surprise (wait for the last TWO pages!) and I had trouble understanding how it happened. From a moral perspective, it made sense and was very satisfying. From a practical sense, it left me scratching my head a little.
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Author of The Saint's Mistress
Sparrow is enslaved in the town of Carthago Nova, in present-day Spain, in the waning years of the Roman Empire. We first meet him as a small boy, just coming to consciousness. He doesn't remember his parents, if he even knew them. Maybe they were also enslaved and he was taken from them. Or maybe they sold him into slavery. Or maybe he was taken as a slave in war. His whole world consists of the kitchen and walled garden of the tavern/brothel where he is enslaved, learning to help in the kitchen. He has never seen anything else that he can remember. This limited world and limited memory of a small child is very well done, and drew me right into the story.
The cook, Focaria, and one of the prostitutes (or "wolves"), Euterpe, serve as surrogate mothers to little Sparrow. Euterpe is nurturing and gentle, Focaria strict and impatient. The brothel manager, Audo, is brutal to the slaves, but obsequious to the owner of the brothel (and its denizens), Cadilus.
As Sparrow grows a little older, he is given the job of going into the town to fetch water and go shopping. At first, he is terrified, never having left the kitchen or garden. And he has to learn to defend himself against boys who taunt him and shopkeepers who try to cheat him. But he learns quickly.
Eventually, Cadilus and Audo decide to put Sparrow to the obvious use of an adolescent boy living at a brothel. And Euterpe and Focaria begin to consider escape.
This is a beautifully written book about a brutally ugly life. It's very hard to read at times. But there are fleeting moments of love and pleasure. And, in my opinion, one of the great things about historical fiction is the perspective that it provides on many times and places. This novel of enslaved people in ancient Spain gave me a new perspective on American slavery and, in general, what it means to be completely powerless over your own life. In particular, it was very pointed about why slaves (and other powerless people) learn to tell lies.
My only objection to this book is that the ending came as a complete surprise (wait for the last TWO pages!) and I had trouble understanding how it happened. From a moral perspective, it made sense and was very satisfying. From a practical sense, it left me scratching my head a little.
Like my reviews? Check out my blog
Author of The Saint's Mistress
November 5, 2023
After reading a few other James Hynes novels and thinking that I knew this author's writing ("The Lecturer's Tale, Publish and Perish"), I was absolutely stunned by "Sparrow." It is expertly-crafted at the sentence level, achingly hopeful but bitter in tone, and wholly, brutally compelling as a whole.
The story is set in Carthago Nova, a Roman slave-trading outpost at the dawn of Justinian's decree (circa 500) declaring Christianity to be the law of the Empire. Hyne's careful attention to historical detail sets the scene small at first, in the kitchen of a wolf house, through the eyes of a boy known as "Mouse" and "Pusus," (meaning simply "boy") who was purchased from a slave-trade ship mistaken as a girl. The geography radiates outward as Pusus grows, adopting his alter-ego, Sparrow, who allows him some emotional distance from his utterly brutal subsistence and introduces a thread of hope that one day, the mouse will escape, even as his world grows larger - the garden, the water-gathering square, the market, the slave market.
We know that Pusus has survived, as the story is told from his aged perspective, at a time when he is known as Jacob and is scarred by the wisdom he's gained from the events of his youth. In Jacob's care, Pusus' story opens up the boy's life through the actions of the prostitutes who become his family. Named for muses, each one alternately protects him and gives him the cold facts and survival tips for the horrible world they must endure. As he grows, the boy begins to dream of freedom, of owning himself and building an identity beyond the narrow confines that dictate his life.
"Sparrow" is full of detailed attention to a place far away and a time long ago, but it feels achingly present and imminent. It is quite possibly one of the top books to expose slavery's brutality in such a pernicious way that it took my breath away and ripped through my sense of equanimity and hope for humankind. With each year, Jacob's life becomes both larger and smaller at once, and as he roots himself in the women who become his sisters, his mothers, his colleagues, his fellow-sufferers, he gains family and a modicum of love and trust that give Sparrow the sliver of hope to persevere.
The story is set in Carthago Nova, a Roman slave-trading outpost at the dawn of Justinian's decree (circa 500) declaring Christianity to be the law of the Empire. Hyne's careful attention to historical detail sets the scene small at first, in the kitchen of a wolf house, through the eyes of a boy known as "Mouse" and "Pusus," (meaning simply "boy") who was purchased from a slave-trade ship mistaken as a girl. The geography radiates outward as Pusus grows, adopting his alter-ego, Sparrow, who allows him some emotional distance from his utterly brutal subsistence and introduces a thread of hope that one day, the mouse will escape, even as his world grows larger - the garden, the water-gathering square, the market, the slave market.
We know that Pusus has survived, as the story is told from his aged perspective, at a time when he is known as Jacob and is scarred by the wisdom he's gained from the events of his youth. In Jacob's care, Pusus' story opens up the boy's life through the actions of the prostitutes who become his family. Named for muses, each one alternately protects him and gives him the cold facts and survival tips for the horrible world they must endure. As he grows, the boy begins to dream of freedom, of owning himself and building an identity beyond the narrow confines that dictate his life.
"Sparrow" is full of detailed attention to a place far away and a time long ago, but it feels achingly present and imminent. It is quite possibly one of the top books to expose slavery's brutality in such a pernicious way that it took my breath away and ripped through my sense of equanimity and hope for humankind. With each year, Jacob's life becomes both larger and smaller at once, and as he roots himself in the women who become his sisters, his mothers, his colleagues, his fellow-sufferers, he gains family and a modicum of love and trust that give Sparrow the sliver of hope to persevere.
April 28, 2024
Sparrow is a book that was not on my radar until my friend Elyse recommended it to me. I immediately ordered a copy, and WOW! This is a book unlike any other I've read. The only book I can compare it to is another historical fiction, 'The Wolf and the Watchman'.
This novel takes place during the last years of the Roman empire in the city of Carthago Nova and is narrated by a slave boy. His life is detailed from the time he is quite young, to his adulthood. He has no idea where he's from and does not know who his parents were. He appears to have been dropped off at a tavern in Helicon which also serves as a house of prostitution.
The novel is a harrowing portrait of this boy's life. Throughout the book, he goes by multiple names and is frequently called Pusus, a name that means 'slave'. His friends are the prostitutes, or 'wolves', who live and work in the tavern. They are all named after muses and one especially is important to him. Her name is Euterpe and she takes him under her wing, attempting to prevent him from getting beaten or harmed. When times are tough or Pusus asks difficult questions she tells him tales that offer optimism, hope, and knowledge.
Euterpe's efforts to shield him from harm don't get very far as Pusus is soon assigned to work with the wolves in the upstairs tavern. His saving grace is his ability to dissociate, and his image of being a sparrow is where he goes when life is too difficult to bear. Euterpe told him a tale about the sparrow's ability to take quick flight and remove itself from danger and fear. Thus, when Pusus is frightened or hurt, he takes the form of a sparrow and hovers outside his physical body.
The novel pointedly explores the hypocrisy and cruelty of the Roman Catholic church during this timeframe. Despite their 'holier than thou' attitudes, they own the brothel and use the money earned through prostitution to build their coffers and support slavery.
The book is an intricate and historical portrait of a time and people, of the overwhelming discrepancies between wealth and poverty, and the story of a boy born into chattel. It is beautifully detailed and the author's research is astonishing. I loved this book and highly recommend it to readers of historical and literary fiction.
This novel takes place during the last years of the Roman empire in the city of Carthago Nova and is narrated by a slave boy. His life is detailed from the time he is quite young, to his adulthood. He has no idea where he's from and does not know who his parents were. He appears to have been dropped off at a tavern in Helicon which also serves as a house of prostitution.
The novel is a harrowing portrait of this boy's life. Throughout the book, he goes by multiple names and is frequently called Pusus, a name that means 'slave'. His friends are the prostitutes, or 'wolves', who live and work in the tavern. They are all named after muses and one especially is important to him. Her name is Euterpe and she takes him under her wing, attempting to prevent him from getting beaten or harmed. When times are tough or Pusus asks difficult questions she tells him tales that offer optimism, hope, and knowledge.
Euterpe's efforts to shield him from harm don't get very far as Pusus is soon assigned to work with the wolves in the upstairs tavern. His saving grace is his ability to dissociate, and his image of being a sparrow is where he goes when life is too difficult to bear. Euterpe told him a tale about the sparrow's ability to take quick flight and remove itself from danger and fear. Thus, when Pusus is frightened or hurt, he takes the form of a sparrow and hovers outside his physical body.
The novel pointedly explores the hypocrisy and cruelty of the Roman Catholic church during this timeframe. Despite their 'holier than thou' attitudes, they own the brothel and use the money earned through prostitution to build their coffers and support slavery.
The book is an intricate and historical portrait of a time and people, of the overwhelming discrepancies between wealth and poverty, and the story of a boy born into chattel. It is beautifully detailed and the author's research is astonishing. I loved this book and highly recommend it to readers of historical and literary fiction.
July 8, 2023
A grittier darker story than The Wolf Den by Eloise Harper. I felt slightly removed from the main character and the story moved at a very slow pace, but was convincingly detailed. Many thanks to Netgalley for an arc of this book.
May 15, 2023
Sparrow is one of my favorite books that I read this year and definitely in my top 10 all time favorite books. This was such a beautiful and heartbreaking book and I loved every single moment of it. I was so grateful that I was able to get an electronic advanced copy and I preordered two hardcovers (one to keep nice and one to tab and annotate when I read it for a second and third and forth time).
Sparrow is about an older man named Jacob who is recounting his life starting from when he was a young slave in Spain. Through Jacob's eyes we are transported back to the 4th Century Roman Empire. We learn that his life has not been as easy one even though you still hope that he was able to experience some good.
At 10 years old he was forced to become a "wolf" in the Brothel that he spent his whole life in. His first rape was just so brutal and heartbreaking. At this point you already love this little boy so much and seeing him experience such pain was just so hard. The descriptions of all of his experiences really make you feel like you are experiencing everything with him.
Despite the sad subject matter, I highly recommend you read Sparrow. You definitely won't regret it!
Sparrow is about an older man named Jacob who is recounting his life starting from when he was a young slave in Spain. Through Jacob's eyes we are transported back to the 4th Century Roman Empire. We learn that his life has not been as easy one even though you still hope that he was able to experience some good.
At 10 years old he was forced to become a "wolf" in the Brothel that he spent his whole life in. His first rape was just so brutal and heartbreaking. At this point you already love this little boy so much and seeing him experience such pain was just so hard. The descriptions of all of his experiences really make you feel like you are experiencing everything with him.
Despite the sad subject matter, I highly recommend you read Sparrow. You definitely won't regret it!
May 7, 2023
I was absolutely engrossed by the first seven eighths of this. I was there in the grimy, decaying vestiges of the Roman Empire, in a half forgotten town, in a tavern that is also a brothel. I felt the misery and hope, the love and the brutality. I came to know all the women, their owners, their overseer and most of all Pusus, who might be called Jacob, or Antinous, or Antiochus, or Mouse, or Little One, or even the name he calls himself - Sparrow. This is his story, but we see all around him too. With heavily descriptive prose and absolutely no sensationalising of all the misery and drama, this was tightly written.
Yet, tvery last few pages? They lost me. After all the reality, this felt like fantasy. If the narrator hadn’t been Pusus as an old man? Well…
Yet, tvery last few pages? They lost me. After all the reality, this felt like fantasy. If the narrator hadn’t been Pusus as an old man? Well…
February 18, 2023
Set in a Spanish town in the Roman Empire, Sparrow is the story of a young boy raised in a brothel by the women who lived and worked there, known as wolves.
We see him grow from naivety to knowing in a very graphic depiction of life as a slave. This is however a story of love and although he does not know where he comes from he does know what love is, and isn’t.
I really enjoyed this book, which is in a similar vein but more direct than The Wolf Den and will seek out more of James Hynes’ work as a result. Thanks to NetGalley and Pan Macmillan for this ARC. All opinions are my own.
We see him grow from naivety to knowing in a very graphic depiction of life as a slave. This is however a story of love and although he does not know where he comes from he does know what love is, and isn’t.
I really enjoyed this book, which is in a similar vein but more direct than The Wolf Den and will seek out more of James Hynes’ work as a result. Thanks to NetGalley and Pan Macmillan for this ARC. All opinions are my own.
May 14, 2023
Rich in context and detail this historical novel is moving and gripping. The sense of time and place of a Spanish town in Roman times was completely immersive and described beautifully. The story of the life of Sparrow, the boy the story centres around is shocking, moving and thrilling. The discussion surrounding slavery, freedom and sex work is really intelligent and sensitive. I enjoyed this book and this is a must for anyone who has read The Wolf Den and enjoyed it. This honest review is given with thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this book.
September 12, 2023
Ähnlich wie Die Wölfe von Pompeji bietet auch Ich, Sperling einen fiktiven, schonungslosen Blick in den Alltag eines Sklaven, der in einem Bordell arbeitet, im 4. Jahrhundert.
Was mir allerdings besser gefallen hat, war, das die Charaktere besser ausgereift sind. Ansonsten ist auch dieses Buch keine leichte Kost und wird den ein oder anderen Leser schockieren oder deprimieren, da es absolut nichts am Dasein von Sperling und den Wölfinnen beschönigt. Dafür ist es jedoch mega spannend geschrieben und wirklich schwer zur Seite zu legen.
Alleine das abrupte Ende hat mir nicht ganz gefallen, da es mich mit zu vielen Fragen zurückgelassen hat.
Wer allerdings auf der Suche nach einem etwas anderen Buch ist und nicht leicht von Gewalt abgeschreckt ist, wird sicher nicht enttäuscht werden!
*Leseexemplar vom Verlag via NetGalley erhalten*
Was mir allerdings besser gefallen hat, war, das die Charaktere besser ausgereift sind. Ansonsten ist auch dieses Buch keine leichte Kost und wird den ein oder anderen Leser schockieren oder deprimieren, da es absolut nichts am Dasein von Sperling und den Wölfinnen beschönigt. Dafür ist es jedoch mega spannend geschrieben und wirklich schwer zur Seite zu legen.
Alleine das abrupte Ende hat mir nicht ganz gefallen, da es mich mit zu vielen Fragen zurückgelassen hat.
Wer allerdings auf der Suche nach einem etwas anderen Buch ist und nicht leicht von Gewalt abgeschreckt ist, wird sicher nicht enttäuscht werden!
*Leseexemplar vom Verlag via NetGalley erhalten*
November 25, 2023
More like 4.5 stars. Sparrow isn't really a literary or artistic masterpiece—honestly, far from it. But Hynes is a true master of the construction of a novel, and a difficult one at that, as this story is truly the definition of a "slow burn". Very few things happen in the first quarter of the novel, and the author has a lust for description that can get a bit plodding ("Can he just come already? incarnate; not Anne Rice level but just about.). I found Sparrow's greatest strength in its worldbuilding and characterization.
Sparrow is the story of a young (potentially Syrian, potentially Jewish) boy sold into slavery as a baby and raised with the "wolves" of Helicon, one of the last brothels left in Roman Spain in the waning days of the Empire. Unnamed and often beaten, Sparrow (as he calls himself) is quickly forced to grow up beyond his years. Eventually made to work upstairs with the women who raised him, Sparrow quickly begins to break down, beaten by the institutions of slavery, sex, and physical labour.
If you couldn't tell, this story is uncomfortable. Deeply. It's in some ways what makes it such a compelling read. In what world would being a sex slave not be horrific? With a similar premise and setting to The Wolf Den trilogy, Sparrow is the grittier, more realistic, and more heartbreaking twin of the pair. I read this book continuously for several days, pushing myself through it despite the many times I thought it'd be better to just shelve it for the night. The novel does an excellent (maybe even too excellent) exploration of the violence of being entered against your will, describing the breaking down of the psyche and constant dissociation that must occur to survive these inhuman practices.
I don't get squeamish easily and that extends to sex, but Jesus Christ. It felt as if sometimes the story veered into the trauma porn for the amount of bullshit and level of graphic description, but God, that's just life, right? I will concede my own history of PTSD and sexual assault are involved in my unease, so if that sounds like you just be aware it's a bit intense. Yugh.
Perhaps (okay definitely) showing my biases, I was often surprised that it was a man who wrote this; the story is so much about the psyche of women under some of the cruelest uses of their body by men that I've definitely been changed for the better. Hynes writes as I would expect a woman to, and I guess I must relinquish my expectation of writing by gender. Hynes is brilliant at it, and all the ugly sex-specific gunk that makes women's psyche so raw is included. Great great additions all around.
Lastly, contrary to the tagging on this site, this novel is not what I would characterize as LGBT or even maybe a queer story. There are definitely themes granted the premise, but they are dark and small compared to the greater story of systematic dehumanization in slavery and what it meant to be a male prostitute at the time. Our titular character is what people would describe today as bisexual, but—I can't iterate this enough—this is not a romance, and there are very few scenes of "self-discovery." The novel ends with the character at around the age of 12 after years of forced prostitution... It's realistic, which makes it so uncomfortable, but sexuality is not the backbone of this story in any meaningful way.
Anyway, I loved this book. LOVED it. It didn't make me think too hard and instead was just a captivating, moving, (eventually) thrilling story. Because of how much I loved it, I'm worried the marketing for it is really failing to capture the usual audience I think would love this—unfortunately, I think the book having an author with such a masculine name like James will turn the usual feminist readers of this sort of story away. It sounds insane but the industry is wild.
Sparrow is the story of a young (potentially Syrian, potentially Jewish) boy sold into slavery as a baby and raised with the "wolves" of Helicon, one of the last brothels left in Roman Spain in the waning days of the Empire. Unnamed and often beaten, Sparrow (as he calls himself) is quickly forced to grow up beyond his years. Eventually made to work upstairs with the women who raised him, Sparrow quickly begins to break down, beaten by the institutions of slavery, sex, and physical labour.
If you couldn't tell, this story is uncomfortable. Deeply. It's in some ways what makes it such a compelling read. In what world would being a sex slave not be horrific? With a similar premise and setting to The Wolf Den trilogy, Sparrow is the grittier, more realistic, and more heartbreaking twin of the pair. I read this book continuously for several days, pushing myself through it despite the many times I thought it'd be better to just shelve it for the night. The novel does an excellent (maybe even too excellent) exploration of the violence of being entered against your will, describing the breaking down of the psyche and constant dissociation that must occur to survive these inhuman practices.
I don't get squeamish easily and that extends to sex, but Jesus Christ. It felt as if sometimes the story veered into the trauma porn for the amount of bullshit and level of graphic description, but God, that's just life, right? I will concede my own history of PTSD and sexual assault are involved in my unease, so if that sounds like you just be aware it's a bit intense. Yugh.
Perhaps (okay definitely) showing my biases, I was often surprised that it was a man who wrote this; the story is so much about the psyche of women under some of the cruelest uses of their body by men that I've definitely been changed for the better. Hynes writes as I would expect a woman to, and I guess I must relinquish my expectation of writing by gender. Hynes is brilliant at it, and all the ugly sex-specific gunk that makes women's psyche so raw is included. Great great additions all around.
Lastly, contrary to the tagging on this site, this novel is not what I would characterize as LGBT or even maybe a queer story. There are definitely themes granted the premise, but they are dark and small compared to the greater story of systematic dehumanization in slavery and what it meant to be a male prostitute at the time. Our titular character is what people would describe today as bisexual, but—I can't iterate this enough—this is not a romance, and there are very few scenes of "self-discovery." The novel ends with the character at around the age of 12 after years of forced prostitution... It's realistic, which makes it so uncomfortable, but sexuality is not the backbone of this story in any meaningful way.
Anyway, I loved this book. LOVED it. It didn't make me think too hard and instead was just a captivating, moving, (eventually) thrilling story. Because of how much I loved it, I'm worried the marketing for it is really failing to capture the usual audience I think would love this—unfortunately, I think the book having an author with such a masculine name like James will turn the usual feminist readers of this sort of story away. It sounds insane but the industry is wild.
April 21, 2024
This is the story of a man who calls himself Jacob, writing in a library in Britain some time in the latter half of the fourth century AD. Jacob has been known by many names over the course of his life: Pusus (Little One), Mouse, Antinous. His secret name for himself is Sparrow. The story focuses on his upbringing, by a group of women in a brothel, between the ages of about 8 and 13.
The women try to shelter him from their trade, and the behaviour of the men who visit for sex, but there is only so much they can do. It isn't long before the young boy is offering his services for sex at the brothel also.
I found this novel hard to like. Its a necessary story I suppose, as I have no doubt that this sort of slavery for sex involved children as well as women. Its unnecessarily long, with lengthy sections where very little happens. The sex is graphic, and staggered throughout the piece, more necessary to the story Hynes is trying to tell, but the whole book left me wondering whether there was any point to it, other than an exaggerated work of historical fiction.
The women try to shelter him from their trade, and the behaviour of the men who visit for sex, but there is only so much they can do. It isn't long before the young boy is offering his services for sex at the brothel also.
I found this novel hard to like. Its a necessary story I suppose, as I have no doubt that this sort of slavery for sex involved children as well as women. Its unnecessarily long, with lengthy sections where very little happens. The sex is graphic, and staggered throughout the piece, more necessary to the story Hynes is trying to tell, but the whole book left me wondering whether there was any point to it, other than an exaggerated work of historical fiction.
April 18, 2025
**Content Warnings at the End of Review**
While I am more of a fantasy reader, I am not opposed to literary fiction, and one of my favorite books of all time is a translated literary fiction novel (The Elegance of the Hedgehog). When I saw a beautiful copy of this book in London, when I visited in 2023, I figured it would be a good one to broaden my horizons with literary fiction again. Unfortunately, while this is a well-written tale and really dives into the everyday life of slaves during the Roman Empire, I did not enjoy this reading experience at all. It had nothing to do with the writing, which was beautiful and well-researched, but the overall story was depressing and traumatic. Please look at the warnings in the content before reading this novel because it is all on-page and graphic.
Sparrow follows the early life of Jacob, a young slave who spent his earliest years in a brothel that resided within the Roman Empire. At the end of his life, Jacob reflects on these earliest memories and the lessons he learned from the other “wolves” residing within the brothel. Jacob’s life is not easy, and he learns that slaves are nothing and have no one, but still learns to love the other women in the brothel and find small moments of joy in his life. As he gets older, he is forced to earn his keep and starts to do more work around the tavern, learning about the men who come there and the ways of the world. Still, Jacob is not prepared for when he joins the ranks of the other women and becomes a wolf himself. As things continue to change in the brothel, Jacob assumes the persona of Sparrow to leave himself while he works or is frightened. Yet, there are consequences to all actions, and soon Jacob will have no choice but to face them alone.
I am not sure what the point of this novel is, if I am being completely honest. We know that Jacob survives into adulthood, but we focus on a couple of years in his early life while at the brothel. There is no lesson to be learned or a feeling of hope throughout the novel. It seems more like tragedy porn than anything else, which I guess makes sense when it is compared to A Little Life by Hanya Yanagihara. I was expecting a hard story, but was hoping at some point there would be some light or hope, but it never came. I am glad that I was listening to this novel via audio because I am not sure I would have been able to get through it reading the physical book.
A highlight of this novel was the audiobook. Theo Solomon does a wonderful job, even if I found his voice for young Jacob slightly grating. I know Theo from his voiceover work in Baldur’s Gate III, and his warm and compassionate voice made the whole experience somewhat bearable.
Hynes did spend time showing and telling us about the individuals that Jacob interacts with and gets to know. From the freed slave who turned store owner to the other wolves, we get to see into their lives through Jacob’s eyes and what they do to both stay alive and keep a part of themselves while dealing with the hardship of being slaves. You come to care for these women, and in a way, they are the main characters far more than Jacob is, especially in the first half. Still, I fail to see why we spend so much time with these women without seeing how they shaped Jacob’s life in the future. The close focus on this period of his life, when he continually says that he experienced so much more and is now in an old, decrepit library, didn’t make any sense.
It is hard to decide on a rating for this book because while it was well written, I did not enjoy my time with it at all. A one feels too harsh for a bad match up between reader and book, but giving it anything else seems unfair to the bad experience I had while reading it. In the end, I am going to give it a one because anything else feels disengenuous, and that is me being generous to the horrible time I had. If you like tragedy-laced books, you will probably enjoy this one, but I am going to get it out of my collection ASAP.
**Content Warnings**
Rape, Sexual violence, Child abuse, Abortion, Fire/Fire injury, Blood, Suicidal thoughts, Vomit, Death of parent
While I am more of a fantasy reader, I am not opposed to literary fiction, and one of my favorite books of all time is a translated literary fiction novel (The Elegance of the Hedgehog). When I saw a beautiful copy of this book in London, when I visited in 2023, I figured it would be a good one to broaden my horizons with literary fiction again. Unfortunately, while this is a well-written tale and really dives into the everyday life of slaves during the Roman Empire, I did not enjoy this reading experience at all. It had nothing to do with the writing, which was beautiful and well-researched, but the overall story was depressing and traumatic. Please look at the warnings in the content before reading this novel because it is all on-page and graphic.
Sparrow follows the early life of Jacob, a young slave who spent his earliest years in a brothel that resided within the Roman Empire. At the end of his life, Jacob reflects on these earliest memories and the lessons he learned from the other “wolves” residing within the brothel. Jacob’s life is not easy, and he learns that slaves are nothing and have no one, but still learns to love the other women in the brothel and find small moments of joy in his life. As he gets older, he is forced to earn his keep and starts to do more work around the tavern, learning about the men who come there and the ways of the world. Still, Jacob is not prepared for when he joins the ranks of the other women and becomes a wolf himself. As things continue to change in the brothel, Jacob assumes the persona of Sparrow to leave himself while he works or is frightened. Yet, there are consequences to all actions, and soon Jacob will have no choice but to face them alone.
I am not sure what the point of this novel is, if I am being completely honest. We know that Jacob survives into adulthood, but we focus on a couple of years in his early life while at the brothel. There is no lesson to be learned or a feeling of hope throughout the novel. It seems more like tragedy porn than anything else, which I guess makes sense when it is compared to A Little Life by Hanya Yanagihara. I was expecting a hard story, but was hoping at some point there would be some light or hope, but it never came. I am glad that I was listening to this novel via audio because I am not sure I would have been able to get through it reading the physical book.
A highlight of this novel was the audiobook. Theo Solomon does a wonderful job, even if I found his voice for young Jacob slightly grating. I know Theo from his voiceover work in Baldur’s Gate III, and his warm and compassionate voice made the whole experience somewhat bearable.
Hynes did spend time showing and telling us about the individuals that Jacob interacts with and gets to know. From the freed slave who turned store owner to the other wolves, we get to see into their lives through Jacob’s eyes and what they do to both stay alive and keep a part of themselves while dealing with the hardship of being slaves. You come to care for these women, and in a way, they are the main characters far more than Jacob is, especially in the first half. Still, I fail to see why we spend so much time with these women without seeing how they shaped Jacob’s life in the future. The close focus on this period of his life, when he continually says that he experienced so much more and is now in an old, decrepit library, didn’t make any sense.
It is hard to decide on a rating for this book because while it was well written, I did not enjoy my time with it at all. A one feels too harsh for a bad match up between reader and book, but giving it anything else seems unfair to the bad experience I had while reading it. In the end, I am going to give it a one because anything else feels disengenuous, and that is me being generous to the horrible time I had. If you like tragedy-laced books, you will probably enjoy this one, but I am going to get it out of my collection ASAP.
**Content Warnings**
Rape, Sexual violence, Child abuse, Abortion, Fire/Fire injury, Blood, Suicidal thoughts, Vomit, Death of parent
December 29, 2025
Tämä oli lohduton tarina bordellissa asuvan nuoren orjapojan elämästä myöhäisantiikin aikana Espanjan Carthago Novassa. Antinoos aloittaa kyökkiorjan apulaisena, mutta vain 10-vuotiaana ”ylenee” asumaan yläkertaan muiden susien joukkoon. Elämä on rankkaa, armotonta ja väkivaltaista, ainakin pienelle pojalle, jolle on alusta asti opetettu että hän on vain esine.
October 1, 2023
An old man living in Britannia at the end of the Roman Empire looks back at his life. Growing up in a Spanish town this unnamed slave boy was raised in a brothel where he was to join the wolves when it was time to make money. I basically inhaled this book as it was so good. It's devastatingly beautiful and heartbreaking at times and you feel all the feels for Sparrow and the wolves he lives with.
May 10, 2023
Thank you to NetGalley and Pan Macmillan for providing a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
"He will die alone at some undetermined time in the future, out of the sight of history."
Sparrow is beautifully written and deeply devastating. It follows the story of a young boy (Sparrow) as he looks back on his life and his beginnings in a taberna srounded by 'wolves'. It explores the brutality of the Roman empire and it's slavery through the eyes of a child that doesn't know their own history. It retells the experience from those who are often forgotten from history. The setting of Carthago Nova really comes to life through Sparrow's experiences and interactions with the world around him. The characters in this are wonderfully done from the furious cook Focaria to the ever looming terrifying presence of Audo the wolves pimp. The trajectory of the plot is almost inevitable but the story is still so rich and rewarding. I would highly recommend this to people who want to dive into the often hidden parts of Roman history, that has meaningful characters, an immersive setting and devastating consequences.
"He will die alone at some undetermined time in the future, out of the sight of history."
Sparrow is beautifully written and deeply devastating. It follows the story of a young boy (Sparrow) as he looks back on his life and his beginnings in a taberna srounded by 'wolves'. It explores the brutality of the Roman empire and it's slavery through the eyes of a child that doesn't know their own history. It retells the experience from those who are often forgotten from history. The setting of Carthago Nova really comes to life through Sparrow's experiences and interactions with the world around him. The characters in this are wonderfully done from the furious cook Focaria to the ever looming terrifying presence of Audo the wolves pimp. The trajectory of the plot is almost inevitable but the story is still so rich and rewarding. I would highly recommend this to people who want to dive into the often hidden parts of Roman history, that has meaningful characters, an immersive setting and devastating consequences.
June 9, 2023
This is the book The Wolf Den was too scared to be. Forget The Wolf Den’s Pretty Woman bullshit, this time it’s going down for real. The late Roman Empire is here and it’s ugly af.
A very graphic (seriously, trigger warnings ⚠️), very bleak look at what it’s like to have to live in slavery, not even given the curtesy of having a real name.
Sparrow follows a slave boy of unknown age, origin, and name from early to middle-ish childhood. Writing decades later from a Britain abandoned by its Roman overlords, Sparrow (as he calls himself) recalls his experiences first as a child labourer and then as a child prostitute living among the town prostitutes or “wolves” in modern day Cartagena on the eve of the fall of the Western Roman Empire.
Early Christianity also plays a significant role, including the uplifting insight that Christian Love (tm) was just as vicious back then as it can be today.
The writing in general was pretty powerful, but I do have some complaints. For starters, this was another book that should have been restricted to 300 pages - editors, honestly, I’m begging all of you. We spend waaaay too much time on Sparrow as a small child; it’s takes half the book before any action really takes place, even if the writing in between is nice and atmospheric.
The weakest part of the story was the character of Sparrow himself - even considering the fact that neither he nor the readers know his exact age, I could never tell how old he was supposed to be at any given point. By the time he gets sent “upstairs” to work as a prostitute, he’s described as being at least somewhat sexually mature, so probably around 10ish, but he still thinks like a toddler, always asking dumb questions. “What’s a fugitive, what’s a graveyard”, that sort of thing. Don’t kids normally have their question phase at like 4/5? I can’t remember being this dim when I was 10…
Last but not least, the author slipped up a few times and threw in some anachronisms - “kebabs” in Ancient Rome, really? A slave called Digitus being nicknamed “Diggy” - people could speak English back then I guess?
Overall, I’d say this is a generous 4* - well written but depressing on all fronts. Sparrow breaks the fourth wall at one point and muses that nobody will most likely ever read his musings, which I feel like encapsulates this novel’s theme of utter hopelessness. There’s no happy endings, no answers to the open questions the narrator or we have, the characters are very complex and very dark (don’t think I’ve felt such disdain for a fictional character in a long time as I did for Focaria, Sparrow’s involuntary surrogate mum from hell). Not a light read, not an easy read, but overall I think I’m more glad than not that I read it.
A very graphic (seriously, trigger warnings ⚠️), very bleak look at what it’s like to have to live in slavery, not even given the curtesy of having a real name.
Sparrow follows a slave boy of unknown age, origin, and name from early to middle-ish childhood. Writing decades later from a Britain abandoned by its Roman overlords, Sparrow (as he calls himself) recalls his experiences first as a child labourer and then as a child prostitute living among the town prostitutes or “wolves” in modern day Cartagena on the eve of the fall of the Western Roman Empire.
Early Christianity also plays a significant role, including the uplifting insight that Christian Love (tm) was just as vicious back then as it can be today.
The writing in general was pretty powerful, but I do have some complaints. For starters, this was another book that should have been restricted to 300 pages - editors, honestly, I’m begging all of you. We spend waaaay too much time on Sparrow as a small child; it’s takes half the book before any action really takes place, even if the writing in between is nice and atmospheric.
The weakest part of the story was the character of Sparrow himself - even considering the fact that neither he nor the readers know his exact age, I could never tell how old he was supposed to be at any given point. By the time he gets sent “upstairs” to work as a prostitute, he’s described as being at least somewhat sexually mature, so probably around 10ish, but he still thinks like a toddler, always asking dumb questions. “What’s a fugitive, what’s a graveyard”, that sort of thing. Don’t kids normally have their question phase at like 4/5? I can’t remember being this dim when I was 10…
Last but not least, the author slipped up a few times and threw in some anachronisms - “kebabs” in Ancient Rome, really? A slave called Digitus being nicknamed “Diggy” - people could speak English back then I guess?
Overall, I’d say this is a generous 4* - well written but depressing on all fronts. Sparrow breaks the fourth wall at one point and muses that nobody will most likely ever read his musings, which I feel like encapsulates this novel’s theme of utter hopelessness. There’s no happy endings, no answers to the open questions the narrator or we have, the characters are very complex and very dark (don’t think I’ve felt such disdain for a fictional character in a long time as I did for Focaria, Sparrow’s involuntary surrogate mum from hell). Not a light read, not an easy read, but overall I think I’m more glad than not that I read it.
May 12, 2023
James Hynes’s debut novel tells the tale of boy born into slavery and sold to a brothel in a provincial port of ancient Spain.
Amid his suffering, Jacob quietly reinvents himself as Sparrow: a songbird who is ‘not excellent at anything but just good enough at everything’ as a coping mechanism for his miserable and challenging labours. Along the way, he mixes with a fascinating dysfunctional sisterhood of fellow slaves and ‘wolves’ (that is, prostitutes) — the strangely powerful Melpomene, the brittle Focaria, the entwined Thalia and Urania, and, above all the loving Euterpe, his adoptive mother.
Hynes’s book is a masterful piece of work, capturing the look and feel of an ancient Roman outpost city at a time of great change. For Carthago Nova is a city and wider culture poised on the cusp of Christianity. Although, the bishop holds ultimate power in town he also has to respect old customs and older professions (the oldest, so it is said).
Every character feels invested and whole, even those who perpetuate the suffering of the main protagonists. There are no moustache-twirling villains, no easy to despise psychopaths. Just men of privilege, men with unaccountable power, and men (and women) whose own scars twist their behaviour.
The wolves, in particular, are brilliantly drawn, with their shifting alliances and divisions drawing them together and pulling them apart as events imposed on them crush their will or cement their unity accordingly.
Sparrow is a magnificent tale of a boy enduring the very hardest life and yet, somehow, finding a way to love and to be loved. It is worth noting that, as one might expect, there are extensive scenes depicting the harshness of slavery and sexual abuse. The books themes will not be for everyone and, accordingly, trigger warnings are made.
(Proof copy supplied. Opinions my own).
Amid his suffering, Jacob quietly reinvents himself as Sparrow: a songbird who is ‘not excellent at anything but just good enough at everything’ as a coping mechanism for his miserable and challenging labours. Along the way, he mixes with a fascinating dysfunctional sisterhood of fellow slaves and ‘wolves’ (that is, prostitutes) — the strangely powerful Melpomene, the brittle Focaria, the entwined Thalia and Urania, and, above all the loving Euterpe, his adoptive mother.
Hynes’s book is a masterful piece of work, capturing the look and feel of an ancient Roman outpost city at a time of great change. For Carthago Nova is a city and wider culture poised on the cusp of Christianity. Although, the bishop holds ultimate power in town he also has to respect old customs and older professions (the oldest, so it is said).
Every character feels invested and whole, even those who perpetuate the suffering of the main protagonists. There are no moustache-twirling villains, no easy to despise psychopaths. Just men of privilege, men with unaccountable power, and men (and women) whose own scars twist their behaviour.
The wolves, in particular, are brilliantly drawn, with their shifting alliances and divisions drawing them together and pulling them apart as events imposed on them crush their will or cement their unity accordingly.
Sparrow is a magnificent tale of a boy enduring the very hardest life and yet, somehow, finding a way to love and to be loved. It is worth noting that, as one might expect, there are extensive scenes depicting the harshness of slavery and sexual abuse. The books themes will not be for everyone and, accordingly, trigger warnings are made.
(Proof copy supplied. Opinions my own).
March 14, 2023
This book was sooo atmospheric. James Hynes writing was pure bliss!!
I had heard a lot about this book, but wasn't 100% convinced it would be my cup of tea, I thought it may be a bit too literary for me. I could not have been more wrong. I was super wrapped up in the characters from the very beginning.
Hyne's writing was so spot on - it felt like I was right there. But without the faff that some books have when descriptive writing - none of it felt like waffle. Everything added something and added to the atmosphere.
This was not the happiest of books - its incredibly downbeat but there is so much hope and fight, that you just want the characters to get out of the life they are living. You feel like they should, and you feel like they can. Never once do the characters feel sorry for themselves, they are fighters. This makes the sad and dark subject matter easier to read.
This was the most atmospheric book I have read for a long long time. Definitely recommend if you want to be swept up into a completely different world!
I had heard a lot about this book, but wasn't 100% convinced it would be my cup of tea, I thought it may be a bit too literary for me. I could not have been more wrong. I was super wrapped up in the characters from the very beginning.
Hyne's writing was so spot on - it felt like I was right there. But without the faff that some books have when descriptive writing - none of it felt like waffle. Everything added something and added to the atmosphere.
This was not the happiest of books - its incredibly downbeat but there is so much hope and fight, that you just want the characters to get out of the life they are living. You feel like they should, and you feel like they can. Never once do the characters feel sorry for themselves, they are fighters. This makes the sad and dark subject matter easier to read.
This was the most atmospheric book I have read for a long long time. Definitely recommend if you want to be swept up into a completely different world!
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