The Last Wolf & Herman | 
pickIt was a funny coincidence to read these stories after reading Drive Your Plows Over the Bones of the Dead. They all dealt in different ways with the issue of hunting and killing animals. Told from three perspectives, we get three strange (as only Krasznahorkai can pull off) stories on hunters and the hunted. I always really enjoy his writing - it‘s a challenge, but it hypnotizes you and pulls you into his world.
pickThis was a bit challenging, a bit unpleasant at times. The Last Wolf, for example, is written in a single sentence which is exhausting and keeps a quick pace that doesn't let up. Still, the writing was just objectively very good. The book is small and short, but has the depth of a much larger book.
pick#NovellasInNovember this is my first completed novella and Whiskey says it‘s time to play! 70 pages and all in one sentence but that did not bother me- translated from Hungarian, a writer is asked to visit a desolate placein Spain to write his impressions of the place- he ends up traveling and hearing the story of the last wolves killed on a finca- he returns to his home and tells the story to a barman, still writing the ending. I enjoyed it.
so-soI loved LĂĄszlo Krasznahorkai's the Melancholy of Resistance but I feel like the novella is too confining for his style. The disorientation of his wandering, labyrinthine sentences bring the powerful moments and ideas into cutting relief in his longer works but here everything is just tangled and frankly a little dull.
And now for something completely different... Does anyone else have to remove the horrible plastic library covers for reading? I know they're important for preservation but I HATE them!
pickSmall and strange enough to be distracting on a pretty terrible day.
Turns out my urge to buy books even when I don't need them is going to serve me well while I wait and see what has gone suddenly wrong with my car.
pickAlthough these are short fiction, the writing style requires some patience (yes, the first is a 68-page single sentence). However, once you're acclimated, these unique stories howl to be reread and pondered over. #translations #shortfiction
Woohoo! First #24in48 #readathon completed! The London Fogs and Fenrir's company were the keys to my success.
pickOk I simply looooved this book! Not only the format (very cool hard cover!) but oh wow the content, not a usual read, which I love!
Herman is split into two versions, pov of the same incident in which the author reaches into the dark corners of your psyche and leaves you to contemplate your own existential void. Yup.
The Last Wolf is told in one single maddening sentence. It will make you laugh and want to cry. Beautiful, creative writing.
It's been a difficult day, counting the hours to get home. Looking at Litsy when I can has brightened my day. For now during lunch, immersing myself in Krazsznahorkai's maddening short novel.
Best wishes to everyone!
"... in mockery of the spasmodic human will that endeavors to tone everything, all that is complex and unknowable, down to its own heroic simplicity..."
Relaxing with an interesting read and my reading buddy while there's still some natural light ?
#catsoflitsy #kittenlitten #petsoflitsy #socksunday
pickKrasznahorkai is notoriously difficult, but his prose is some of the most beautiful being written anywhere in the world. These two short novels have all of his trademarks and so are a perfect starting point if you are interested in his work.
latest to-read book!
The Last Wolf & Herman https://www.amazon.com/dp/0811226085/
