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3.55 AVERAGE
3.55 AVERAGE
rip kafka u would have loved terry gilliam
so whimsical, so anxiety inducing
so whimsical, so anxiety inducing
adventurous
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
It's difficult to accurate rate an incomplete book, however I never felt gripped during this story.
I really like conflict in Kafka books. Man can never catch a break. Love interests don’t play as much a role in this one.
Laughed a few times.
Laughed a few times.
Кафка си има репутация, но предвид че с тази книга се е опитвал да избяга от нея и да напише "нещо по-леко" едва ли точно тя е подходящата за запознаване с творчеството му.
Всъщност обаче, "Америка" постига същия ефект, като останалите му книги, ако и с други методи. Докато от стандартните текстове на Кафка ти иде да си прережеш вените от черногледство и депресия, "Америка" те кара да направиш това с безсмислие и обърканост.
Всъщност обаче, "Америка" постига същия ефект, като останалите му книги, ако и с други методи. Докато от стандартните текстове на Кафка ти иде да си прережеш вените от черногледство и депресия, "Америка" те кара да направиш това с безсмислие и обърканост.
Required for fans and scholars of Kafka. Imperfect, as it was an unfinished MS--but there's much here that sheds light on Kafka's tortured mind and process. One reads Kafka for the surreal, atmospheric touches--and the humor. It's all here--but the novel sort of abruptly ends. The commentary by the publisher and translator are worth reading--but only after reading the novel itself since they contain spoilers. These sort of features should be part of an afterword, IMHO.
I can't wait to read a Kafka work that is supposedly from a complete manuscript.
This is what Arthur Phillips said in an interview that made me want to read this book:
Robert Birnbaum: Kafka did come to America?
AP: No he only wrote a book about it. A wonderful piece of nonsense, too. That’s another good one. Amerika is a great—I think is one that he wanted burned. I am not sure. Do you know the opening sentence of it? It’s like, “Karl Rossman—Karl Rossman stood on the bridge—I am getting this wrong—of the steamer as it came into New York harbor and he saw the Statue of Liberty, her arm lofted, the gleaming sword catching the sunlight.” Or something like that. [both laugh] And you are immediately thinking, “Were there no pictures in the 1920s or is he just saying up front we are not going to bother with that stuff?” And then later on in the story, the character takes the subway out to the mountains to visit the senator who seems to be a duke of some sort, where he is attacked by the senator’s kung-fu wielding daughter. It’s a great—
This is what Arthur Phillips said in an interview that made me want to read this book:
Robert Birnbaum: Kafka did come to America?
AP: No he only wrote a book about it. A wonderful piece of nonsense, too. That’s another good one. Amerika is a great—I think is one that he wanted burned. I am not sure. Do you know the opening sentence of it? It’s like, “Karl Rossman—Karl Rossman stood on the bridge—I am getting this wrong—of the steamer as it came into New York harbor and he saw the Statue of Liberty, her arm lofted, the gleaming sword catching the sunlight.” Or something like that. [both laugh] And you are immediately thinking, “Were there no pictures in the 1920s or is he just saying up front we are not going to bother with that stuff?” And then later on in the story, the character takes the subway out to the mountains to visit the senator who seems to be a duke of some sort, where he is attacked by the senator’s kung-fu wielding daughter. It’s a great—
reflective
I enjoyed the style and could imagine the scenes in detail. Not the most interesting story though, and I didn’t quite “get” the ending with the circus, but having read the intro it’s because there are lost chapters for this book.