Even before starting this book I knew I loved the author! In his bio it mentions that he had a besetting love for books. When asked what was the most crucial event of his life, he replied, "learning to read," and later when asked how he would like to die he said, "in bed with a book."
In the book's introduction, The Hothouse is described as .... "It is an intellectual book, you might almost say a book written for writers, full of civilization, quotations, allusions, doubt and asperity, the song of a cerebral despair, a protocol of failure, a plumbing of the depths of the soul, a laying bare of the emotions and the heart. . . . The novel is told at a breathless pace. But its panting breath has the moving, burning sniff of great poetry. It is an intoxicating book. The words flow over the reader like a cataract and make him delirious. But they are also elevating."
Koeppen says ...
"The novel, The Hothouse, draws on current events, in particular recent political events, but only as a catalyst for the imagination of the author. Personalities, places, and events that occur in the story are nowhere identical with their equivalents in reality. References to living persons are neither made nor intended in what is a purely fictional narrative. The scope of the book lies beyond any connections with individuals, organizations, and events of the present time; which is to say, the novel has its own poetic truthfulness."
These notes were collected in celebration of Wolfgang Koeppen's birthday: June 23, 1906.
You can find the entire book to read online at this web address: https://fullenglishbooks.com/english-books/full-book-the-hothouse-read-online
ReplyDeleteEven before starting this book I knew I loved the author! In his bio it mentions that he had a besetting love for books. When asked what was the most crucial event of his life, he replied, "learning to read," and later when asked how he would like to die he said, "in bed with a book."
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ReplyDeleteIn the book's introduction, The Hothouse is described as .... "It is an intellectual book, you might almost say a book written for writers, full of civilization, quotations, allusions, doubt and asperity, the song of a cerebral despair, a protocol of failure, a plumbing of the depths of the soul, a laying bare of the emotions and the heart. . . . The novel is told at a breathless pace. But its panting breath has the moving, burning sniff of great poetry. It is an intoxicating book. The words flow over the reader like a cataract and make him delirious. But they are also elevating."
Koeppen says ...
"The novel, The Hothouse, draws on current events, in particular recent political events, but only as a catalyst for the imagination of the author. Personalities, places, and events that occur in the story are nowhere identical with their equivalents in reality. References to living persons are neither made nor intended in what is a purely fictional narrative. The scope of the book lies beyond any connections with individuals, organizations, and events of the present time; which is to say, the novel has its own poetic truthfulness."