Elias Canetti is in the tradition of deeply cultured Pan-European writers. He was born in Bulgaria in 1904, died in Zurich 1994, received the Nobel Prize in 1981, wrote in German, he moved to England when Austria joined Germany and became a British citizen. I enjoy visualizing him in the lobby of The Grand President Hotel. I wonder what he might have read while there.
The alleged theme of The Reading Life is the literary treatment of people whose lives center about their reading. Set between the world wars in Germany, the lead character Peter Kein is an internationally recognized authority and translator of Chinese literature. His life centers around his magnificent personal library. One day he makes a bad mistake, he marries his housekeeper. A nasty shrewish woman non-reading woman who has no respect for his vast erudition and looks upon the books just as dusty commodities. He knows almost from the start it was a mistake but loneliness drove him to it. His life turns into a living hell as his wife tries to steal all his money, from an inheritance that long ago allowed him to follow his passion for books and reading. (Loving books and reading are not the same thing but in the bests cases they are.)
He enters a bizzare world outside his library, a world he knows little about. (Side note, why so many hunchbacks in European literature of the era? Why are they always evil or feeble minded?)
The conclusion is shocking. I am sure there are period cultural refrences and allusions that went over my head. I greatly enjoyed this book and could see rereading it in 2016.
Mel ü
I'm glad you liked it Mel. It's certainly bizarre. I think I appreciated it more re-reading it as I knew what to expect. It's a shame Canetti didn't write more fiction.
ReplyDeleteJonathan. It is certainly very weird and gets stranger as you read on. Thanks for your visit.
ReplyDeleteThank you so much for your comment on my Canetti review. I found your comment very helpful and I am sure it is appreciated by other readers, as well.
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