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An impressive and fascinating work of historical fiction. It contains the biography of the extraordinary (but fictional) life of Cyrus Spitama, a great-uncle of Democritus (the first Western philosopher to come up with a materialistic philosophy based on atoms). Told by the main character and written down by Democritus himself :). The main character is also the grandson of Zoroaster and is educated at the court of Darius, the 'King of Kings' of Persia. His life is situated in the 6th-5th century BC and many historical events re. the Achaemenid (Persian) empire, including the wars with the Greek states, are told from an insider's point of view. Moreover, Cyrus is appointed ambassador twice to the 'East' (India) and the 'East of the East', i.e. Cathay (China), leading to many adventures. In passing, the different religions/philosophies of the time are explained in some detail, through dialogues and observations. It thus appears that Zoroastrianism is (the religion is not extinct) a clear precursor of Christianity. In India, Cyrus meets and discusses with Gautama Buddha, who giggles a lot, while in China he learns about Lao-Tze and meets Confucius.

The story often contains humorous observations, with special attention to the many defects of the Athenians and the Greeks in general.

Amazingly, the tale is never boring, except in the, in my opinion, too long and drawn out section on Confucius.