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olaf_alec's review
emotional
reflective
relaxing
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
sriq's review against another edition
"So I walk home like a burning house, like a burning stable, the light of life pouring out of the fire, fire pouring out of the dying wood, hostile sorrow lingering under the ashes."
"I can be by myself because I'm never lonely, I'm simply alone, living in my heavily populated solitude, a harum-scarum of infinity and eternity, and Infinity and Eternity seem to take a liking to the likes of me."
"For a long time thereafter I would hear the crunch of human skeletons whenever my hydraulic press entered its final phase and crushed the beautiful books with a force of twenty atmospheres, I would hear the crunch of human skeletons and feel I was grinding up the skulls and bones of pre-crushed classics, the part of the Talmud that says: 'For we are like olives: only when we are crushed do we yield what is best in us.'"
"I can be by myself because I'm never lonely, I'm simply alone, living in my heavily populated solitude, a harum-scarum of infinity and eternity, and Infinity and Eternity seem to take a liking to the likes of me."
"For a long time thereafter I would hear the crunch of human skeletons whenever my hydraulic press entered its final phase and crushed the beautiful books with a force of twenty atmospheres, I would hear the crunch of human skeletons and feel I was grinding up the skulls and bones of pre-crushed classics, the part of the Talmud that says: 'For we are like olives: only when we are crushed do we yield what is best in us.'"
disneyboy7's review against another edition
dark
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Suicide
matin45's review against another edition
dark
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
karinlib's review against another edition
4.0
This was a difficult book to rate. It's a story of a man in Prague whose job it is to destroy books, art, ephemera, and yet because he can pick out a book from the pile and read it (which often gets him into trouble), he obtains an education. I love any book that celebrates books and reading.
maiamiga's review against another edition
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-paced
4.75
Una gran novela llena de crítica social, llena de poesía, llena de sensorialidad, llena de la ciudad de Praga y con un personaje único que nos repugna y nos provoca empatía y cariño a partes iguales. La atmósfera, las metáforas que crea, la defensa de la cultura y de los libros frente al sinsentido del poder.... Es una maravilla. No le doy más puntuación porque, a pesar de ser muy breve, a mí me ha gustado sobre todo el inicio y el final, sobre todo esta última. Pero igualmente es una obra inolvidable, simbólica a más no poder, que me ha hecho recordar a otro checo irrepetible como es Kafka.
missbookiverse's review
3.0
Ist ein bisschen wie ein tschechisches [b:Fahrenheit 451|13079982|Fahrenheit 451|Ray Bradbury|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1383718290i/13079982._SY75_.jpg|1272463], weil der Protagonist in einer Papierpresse arbeitet und immer Bücher aus dem Müll zieht und sie liest bevor er sie gezielt in die Presse wirft. Sogar der Schreibstil ist ein bisschen ähnlich und gerade am Anfang wunderschön:
Das verliert sich dann leider ein wenig und ich konnte nicht mit jedem Kapitel etwas anfangen, aber insgesamt fand ich es sehr originell und mit mehr historischem Kontext ließen sich sicher auch diese Kapitel besser erschließen.
For thirty-five years I've been compacting wastepaper and books, smearing myself with letters until I've come to look like my encyclopedias [...]. I am a jug filled with water both magic and plain; I have only to lean over and a stream of beautiful thoughts flows out of me.
Das verliert sich dann leider ein wenig und ich konnte nicht mit jedem Kapitel etwas anfangen, aber insgesamt fand ich es sehr originell und mit mehr historischem Kontext ließen sich sicher auch diese Kapitel besser erschließen.