A Ballet of Lepers Paperback by Leonard Cohen

Product Details

• Publisher: McClelland & Stewart (2025-10-21)
• Language: English
• Paperback: 272 pages
• ISBN-13: 9780771018275
• Item Weight: 243.81 grams
• Dimensions: 8.2 x 5.48 x 0.7 cm

NATIONAL BESTSELLER
AN OBSERVER BOOK OF THE YEAR

The uncovered novel and stories from the world's greatest lyricist, Leonard Cohen.

Before "Hallelujah," "Suzanne," and "Famous Blue Raincoat," the young Leonard Cohen was a gifted writer of prose. In this previously unpublished work, readers will discover the magic that animated Cohen's unique voice was present from the very beginning. 

A Ballet of Lepers comprises Cohen's first novel and short stories, written between 1956 in Montreal and 1961, when he had settled on the island of Hydra in Greece. The titular story follows a reclusive man whose life is invigorated when his grandfather comes to live with him. The book explores themes that would permeate Cohen's later work, from shame and unworthiness to sexual desire and longing. Meditative, surprising, and provacative, A Ballet of Lepers reveals the great artist like never before.

About the Author

LEONARD COHEN's artistic career began in 1956 with the publication of his first book of poetry, Let Us Compare Mythologies. He published two novels, The Favourite Game and Beautiful Losers, and ten books of poetry in his lifetime, including Stranger Music: Selected Poems and Songs and Book of Longing. His latest poetry collection, The Flame, was published posthumously in 2018. During a recording career that spanned almost fifty years, he released fourteen studio albums, the last of which, You Want It Darker, was released in 2016. Cohen was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2008, received a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award in 2010, and was awarded the Prince of Asturias Award for Literature and the Glenn Gould Prize in 2011. He died on November 7, 2016.