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3.03 AVERAGE
3.03 AVERAGE
reflective
medium-paced
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
adventurous
funny
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
This would do numbers as a Ghibli movie. It's incredibly funny and trippy yet so beautifully written; distinctly self-aware and ironic approach towards its genre, without being too cynical. It encapsulates the deeply romantic idea that the pen is mightiest, that devoted artistry is the highest form of existence. If one is into opulent language and intricate descriptions of paradisical imagery, this is perfect.
Ich kann vollkommen nachvollziehen, wieso Menschen, die nicht gerne lesen, nach dieser (in meiner Oberstufe) Schullektüre noch weniger Lust auf lesen haben. Sätze, die über 13, 14 Zeilen gehen, sind auch bei den kleinen Reclam-Heften einfach nicht schön, egal wie nett die Story ist.
funny
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
adventurous
funny
mysterious
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
challenging
lighthearted
reflective
relaxing
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
mysterious
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
challenging
dark
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Among all the short stories, novellas and fictional books by Hoffmann that I've read in the original language (German) this has been the most difficult one. Usually the magical and the realistic part are perfectly intervowen so that the reader is partially confused and doesn't know what is real and what not. This magical realism is something I like a lot in his stories. In this novella, or fairy tale as Hoffmann calls it, the imaginary part is really very unreal and exaggerated, therefore not a lot to my liking. Not being a native German speaker made things even more difficult. I had often to re-read some parts twice to see if I understood it correctly and what I've read really happened, or if maybe I misunderstood some parts. I had these problems above all with the explanation of why Lindhorst had been sent away from Atlantis, and with a part dedicated to the life of a witch that cursed Anselmus, the main character. I would say that I had some problems with German with the magical parts: I surely missed some details but I was however able to understand the meaning of those parts, though I like to understand every single word. I wonder if I would have liked it more if I would have read it in my mothertongue.
I won't write about the plot because it's pretty complicated and confused. The story has basically two love stories (though very magical and surreal ones) and at the end pure love wins over love risen only because of personal interests. To tell the truth, both main characters, Anselmus and Veronika, will find at the end what they wanted, though they had to go through a lot of magic, curses, witchcraft and whatever. This isn't a spoiler, because the end is not predictable.
I won't write about the plot because it's pretty complicated and confused. The story has basically two love stories (though very magical and surreal ones) and at the end pure love wins over love risen only because of personal interests. To tell the truth, both main characters, Anselmus and Veronika, will find at the end what they wanted, though they had to go through a lot of magic, curses, witchcraft and whatever. This isn't a spoiler, because the end is not predictable.