What do you think?
Rate this book
The World Is Round
Published to commemorate its 75th anniversary, The World Is Round brings back into print the classic story created by Gertrude Stein and Clement Hurd. Written in her unique prose style, Gertrude Stein's The World Is Round chronicles the adventures of a young girl named Rose—a whimsical tale that delights in wordplay and sound while exploring the ideas of personal identity and individuality. This stunning volume replicates the original 1939 edition to a T, including all of Clement Hurd's original blue-and-white art printed on the rose-pink paper that Stein insisted upon. Also featured here are two essays that provide an inside view to the making of the book. The first, a foreword by Clement Hurd's son, author and illustrator Thacher Hurd, includes previously unpublished photographs and sheds light on a creative family life in Vermont, where his father and mother, author Edith Thacher Hurd, often collaborated on children's books. The second essay, an afterword by Edith Thacher Hurd, takes readers behind the scenes of the making of The World Is Round , including the numerous letters exchanged between Hurd and Stein as well as images of Stein with the real-life Rose and her white poodle, Love.
128 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 1939
44 people are currently reading
1393 people want to read
About the author
Gertrude Stein
407 books1,184 followersGertrude Stein was an American writer who spent most of her life in France, and who became a catalyst in the development of modern art and literature. Her life was marked by two primary relationships, the first with her brother Leo Stein, from 1874-1914, and the second with Alice B. Toklas, from 1907 until Stein's death in 1946. Stein shared her salon at 27 rue de Fleurus, Paris, first with Leo and then with Alice. Throughout her lifetime, Stein cultivated significant tertiary relationships with well-known members of the avant garde artistic and literary world of her time.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 109 reviews
June 5, 2016
A long time ago, back when I was in college, I had a rather strange professor for Modern American Literature. When we started on Gertrude Stein's work, rather than require us to write a reading response, he asked us to write a haiku. Specifically about how Stein's work made us feel. You can guarantee that every single haiku turned in had something to do with how incomprehensible Tender Buttons was. However, I will never forget one student's haiku.
I didn't know him very well, other than that he was majoring in both English and History. As his haiku was read, I realized it was yet another poem about how difficult it was to understand Stein. But it was far more playful than the rest. He wrote about how he was on a boat, fishing, and all he could reel in were words. They had assembled in ways that he couldn't understand, no matter how hard he thought about it. That's always stuck with me. In one haiku, he had defined exactly what an English major does when approaching a creative work.
My initial reaction with Stein has always been to laugh. It's not that I'm laughing at her work because I find it ridiculous, but the liberation that her language exhibits has always elated me. When I see repeating words, names that double as words (Will he and will he; even Willie sounds like will he), the lack of punctuation, I laugh because . . . because I love it. I don't know why. But I do. I'm at a point where I realize I will never understand Stein's work fully and that is okay - so long as I can still appreciate what she did.
The World is Round is, if you can believe it, a children's novel by Gertrude Stein with illustrations by Clement Hurd, who also illustrated Goodnight, Moon. It is a children's novel in the same way that The Neverending Story and The Little Prince are children's stories. Value need not be ascertained by age, but by one who can find all that is round within this world of Rose and Willie.
I found the afterword by Hurd's wife, Edith Thacher Hurd, to be the most delectable piece of information. For all we talk of the innovations with young adult fiction, we never really discuss the staple in society that are picture books. During the 1920's, picture books were allowed to be a little more experimental. Margaret Wise Brown was the one who suggested that adult authors, like John Steinbeck, Ernest Hemingway, and Gertrude Stein be approached to write children's books. It's sad that Steinbeck and Hemingway both backed down from the offer, who knows what they would have created. But Stein replied that she had already finished a novel that was ready for publication. And thus, The World is Round was published in 1939.
"I am a little girl and my name is Rose, Rose is my name.
Why am I a little girl
And why is my name Rose
And when am I a little girl
And when is my name Rose
And where am I a little girl
And where is my name Rose
And which little girl am I am I the little girl named Rose which little girl named Rose."
Upon reading about Rose's search for identity, I began to laugh. Because that is the way in which I understand Stein, is by humor. There is an inherent sense of humor to The World is Round, coupled with dangers of near-drownings and nights spent out in the woods. Rose is having an identity crisis upon realizing that the world is round while her cousin, Willie, is sure of his self.
"He knew when he ran
And he knew when he sang
And he knew who
Who was Willie
He was Willie
All through."
Willie claims nature. He finds a lion and is so proud of his achievement that he gives it to Rose, who realizes she can't keep a lion. Rose is one who sees herself apart from nature. Beginning with the little dog Pepe, who bites her. It is a reminder that the vestiges of identity and rationalization have no place in a world of survival. Willie understands this, having survived two near-drownings. And so, he seems more at peace with the roundness of the world. But Rose must find her place in the round world. She must find who she is.
The prose is of lyrical quality and while I did not read it aloud, I would make songs out of the passages which were then on repeat in my head. If there is one thing that you can always take away from Stein's writing, it is the rhythm of language. I can see how this would captivate not only adults, but children as well.
I'm not sure if I'm the only one who feels this way, but Clement Hurd's artwork seemed very lonely to me. There's something about it. Is it the faceless faces? Is it that no matter how hard Rose strives to discover who she is and where there will be a there there for her, she can never be identified by facial qualities? I can't tell you what it is, as I can't tell you exactly why Stein's work delights me so, but there is something very haunting about it.
Rose claims existence through artwork, much as Stein did as well. She is proclaiming her existence, writing "A Rose is a Rose is a Rose . . ." on the tree. And it is in this way that we try to refute the inexorability of the world with our existence. We have created. We have triumphed the anonymity of the world. But we have not. If there is an image that defines this thought, it is in the beginning of Lars von Trier's Melancholia and watching Pieter Bruegel's The Hunters in the Snow burn away into dust. Art will not save us. It can console us. But it will not save us.
Upon finding her place in the world, a hill of all places, Rose is at peace momentarily. We are reminded with the following illustration that the world is still round. And with this discovery comes another discovery: that Willie is not her cousin after all and that Rose is free to marry him. It is a reminder that all life is cyclical - perhaps Rose will have a little Rose who will wonder who she is. Perhaps she too will carry that one object that defines her, a blue chair, and realize that she loves the color blue because it is also the color of her eyes.
This is Stein's work at its most accessible. Even if you don't understand anything going on, it's a pleasure to read. Although, if you're asking me, I think all of Stein's writing is a pleasure to read. Her experimental spirit is held in place by that backbone of creativity: play.
Here's to many more readings of this in the future, hopefully out-loud.
I didn't know him very well, other than that he was majoring in both English and History. As his haiku was read, I realized it was yet another poem about how difficult it was to understand Stein. But it was far more playful than the rest. He wrote about how he was on a boat, fishing, and all he could reel in were words. They had assembled in ways that he couldn't understand, no matter how hard he thought about it. That's always stuck with me. In one haiku, he had defined exactly what an English major does when approaching a creative work.
My initial reaction with Stein has always been to laugh. It's not that I'm laughing at her work because I find it ridiculous, but the liberation that her language exhibits has always elated me. When I see repeating words, names that double as words (Will he and will he; even Willie sounds like will he), the lack of punctuation, I laugh because . . . because I love it. I don't know why. But I do. I'm at a point where I realize I will never understand Stein's work fully and that is okay - so long as I can still appreciate what she did.
The World is Round is, if you can believe it, a children's novel by Gertrude Stein with illustrations by Clement Hurd, who also illustrated Goodnight, Moon. It is a children's novel in the same way that The Neverending Story and The Little Prince are children's stories. Value need not be ascertained by age, but by one who can find all that is round within this world of Rose and Willie.
I found the afterword by Hurd's wife, Edith Thacher Hurd, to be the most delectable piece of information. For all we talk of the innovations with young adult fiction, we never really discuss the staple in society that are picture books. During the 1920's, picture books were allowed to be a little more experimental. Margaret Wise Brown was the one who suggested that adult authors, like John Steinbeck, Ernest Hemingway, and Gertrude Stein be approached to write children's books. It's sad that Steinbeck and Hemingway both backed down from the offer, who knows what they would have created. But Stein replied that she had already finished a novel that was ready for publication. And thus, The World is Round was published in 1939.
"I am a little girl and my name is Rose, Rose is my name.
Why am I a little girl
And why is my name Rose
And when am I a little girl
And when is my name Rose
And where am I a little girl
And where is my name Rose
And which little girl am I am I the little girl named Rose which little girl named Rose."
Upon reading about Rose's search for identity, I began to laugh. Because that is the way in which I understand Stein, is by humor. There is an inherent sense of humor to The World is Round, coupled with dangers of near-drownings and nights spent out in the woods. Rose is having an identity crisis upon realizing that the world is round while her cousin, Willie, is sure of his self.
"He knew when he ran
And he knew when he sang
And he knew who
Who was Willie
He was Willie
All through."
Willie claims nature. He finds a lion and is so proud of his achievement that he gives it to Rose, who realizes she can't keep a lion. Rose is one who sees herself apart from nature. Beginning with the little dog Pepe, who bites her. It is a reminder that the vestiges of identity and rationalization have no place in a world of survival. Willie understands this, having survived two near-drownings. And so, he seems more at peace with the roundness of the world. But Rose must find her place in the round world. She must find who she is.
The prose is of lyrical quality and while I did not read it aloud, I would make songs out of the passages which were then on repeat in my head. If there is one thing that you can always take away from Stein's writing, it is the rhythm of language. I can see how this would captivate not only adults, but children as well.
I'm not sure if I'm the only one who feels this way, but Clement Hurd's artwork seemed very lonely to me. There's something about it. Is it the faceless faces? Is it that no matter how hard Rose strives to discover who she is and where there will be a there there for her, she can never be identified by facial qualities? I can't tell you what it is, as I can't tell you exactly why Stein's work delights me so, but there is something very haunting about it.
Rose claims existence through artwork, much as Stein did as well. She is proclaiming her existence, writing "A Rose is a Rose is a Rose . . ." on the tree. And it is in this way that we try to refute the inexorability of the world with our existence. We have created. We have triumphed the anonymity of the world. But we have not. If there is an image that defines this thought, it is in the beginning of Lars von Trier's Melancholia and watching Pieter Bruegel's The Hunters in the Snow burn away into dust. Art will not save us. It can console us. But it will not save us.
Upon finding her place in the world, a hill of all places, Rose is at peace momentarily. We are reminded with the following illustration that the world is still round. And with this discovery comes another discovery: that Willie is not her cousin after all and that Rose is free to marry him. It is a reminder that all life is cyclical - perhaps Rose will have a little Rose who will wonder who she is. Perhaps she too will carry that one object that defines her, a blue chair, and realize that she loves the color blue because it is also the color of her eyes.
This is Stein's work at its most accessible. Even if you don't understand anything going on, it's a pleasure to read. Although, if you're asking me, I think all of Stein's writing is a pleasure to read. Her experimental spirit is held in place by that backbone of creativity: play.
Here's to many more readings of this in the future, hopefully out-loud.
Want to read
August 30, 2016Well, Gertrude Stein wrote a children's book. “Don’t bother about the commas which aren’t there, read the words. Don’t worry about the sense that is there, read the words. If you have any trouble, read faster and faster until you don’t.”
Read
February 12, 2022Hmmm
maybe I’m not ‘artsy’ enough to understand this but I felt like throwing this out the window
maybe I’m not ‘artsy’ enough to understand this but I felt like throwing this out the window
January 23, 2014
Not sure if I liked or disliked this book. It was kind of a thing that happened.
April 4, 2013
I've tried to read other works by Gertrude Stein, but have found them un-engaging. And then there's this book. It's probably one of my favorite three or four books of all time.
It's really not like anything else Stein ever wrote and to file it under "children's literature" is unfair, because there's just as much here (probably more) for adults than there is for kids. I'll let you draw your own conclusions, but as other reviewers have said, it's about self-determination, finding your place in the world, fulfillment (and lack thereof), and what it means to be human. And all in a very simple story about a girl and a chair that you can read in about an hour.
A brief synopsis:
Rose, roughly six years old, lives with her parents and her dog.
The first third of the book tells of her relationship with her dog and the neighbors' dog, and, also, her relationship with her cousin Willie (also about six years old). Willie acts brave, much to Rose's annoyance, but when he gets a pet lion, his true colors shine through.
The rest of the book is about Rose carrying a blue chair up a "mountain" (more like a hill) that's not far from her backyard.
That's pretty much it in the way of plot. The star here is the language, though, and how well it fits with the characters and how easily it relates feelings and thoughts that all of us have, at every age, through the eyes of a child. But not in any condescending way. Which is why this book is so great. Stein succeeds in leaving herself out of it. It doesn't feel like it's written by an adult trying to see the world again through the eyes of a child. Instead, a six year old child is telling you this story, and she's trying to figure out what it means to be alive.
It's really not like anything else Stein ever wrote and to file it under "children's literature" is unfair, because there's just as much here (probably more) for adults than there is for kids. I'll let you draw your own conclusions, but as other reviewers have said, it's about self-determination, finding your place in the world, fulfillment (and lack thereof), and what it means to be human. And all in a very simple story about a girl and a chair that you can read in about an hour.
A brief synopsis:
Rose, roughly six years old, lives with her parents and her dog.
The first third of the book tells of her relationship with her dog and the neighbors' dog, and, also, her relationship with her cousin Willie (also about six years old). Willie acts brave, much to Rose's annoyance, but when he gets a pet lion, his true colors shine through.
The rest of the book is about Rose carrying a blue chair up a "mountain" (more like a hill) that's not far from her backyard.
That's pretty much it in the way of plot. The star here is the language, though, and how well it fits with the characters and how easily it relates feelings and thoughts that all of us have, at every age, through the eyes of a child. But not in any condescending way. Which is why this book is so great. Stein succeeds in leaving herself out of it. It doesn't feel like it's written by an adult trying to see the world again through the eyes of a child. Instead, a six year old child is telling you this story, and she's trying to figure out what it means to be alive.
October 2, 2018
I was delighted by this little book, and that is even without the illustrations.
December 29, 2014
Ugh. Painful.
December 18, 2013
NO - you cannot put this book down and just walk away. Ever wonder who you are? "Who am I?" This book should open your eyes. Not a hard read but a fun, easy read to make you think a bit. First published in 1939. So, now you know it is not a NEW book but a 'refreshed' book that is, I think made for children AND adults.
This book is just over 100 pages, kinda like a fill-in between the serious books that you read.
You will get to know Rose, Willie and Billie. BUT ROSE IS A ROSE.
AND yes, got this book free from Goodreads.com and the Author.
This book is just over 100 pages, kinda like a fill-in between the serious books that you read.
You will get to know Rose, Willie and Billie. BUT ROSE IS A ROSE.
AND yes, got this book free from Goodreads.com and the Author.
September 18, 2017
Веднъж се срещнах аз и аз побягнах.
Да бягам никой там не ме видя.
Веднъж щом може може пак
И никой нищо да не види факт
Но каквото искам аз ще правя
Ще бягам тичам и летя
Аз Уили аз.
Дай ми хляб
Дай масло
Дай ми сирене
И сладко
Дай ми мляко
И кокошка
Дай ми повече яйца
Също мъничко салам който бързо да изям.
Да бягам никой там не ме видя.
Веднъж щом може може пак
И никой нищо да не види факт
Но каквото искам аз ще правя
Ще бягам тичам и летя
Аз Уили аз.
Дай ми хляб
Дай масло
Дай ми сирене
И сладко
Дай ми мляко
И кокошка
Дай ми повече яйца
Също мъничко салам който бързо да изям.
February 6, 2014
I am glad that I didn't read this book as a child, because I'm not sure if I would have enjoyed it as much. The writing is incredibly beautiful. I think we all have a Rose in us, who is trying to go somewhere, but when we reach there, we realize that there is not there.
Read
August 3, 2024Alara'yla almıştık ve içine yazdığı nota bakılırsa rüyalar hakkında baya konuşmuşuz o gün. Çok güzel uyuyor çünkü kitap okumuş değil de öğlen sızıp bir rüya görmüş gibi hissediyorum. Mutluyum.
April 17, 2019
A child’s questions, songs, and explorations of world and self. Stein’s style suits children, and writing for children curbs her pretentiousness.
January 28, 2021
Gertrude Stein is a genius and this is a kids book (?) or at least, it is certainly a book, written by her, with illustrations by the great Clement Hurd. The 75th anniversary edition also features a long essay by Hurd's wife, which gives all kinds of good information about Stein herself and the world of children's literature, back when that was an emerging genre. This tells me, among other things, that there were carpets and wallpapers done featuring Hurd's illustrations for this book. A google search or two has not found me any variants of these that I can purchase, and I am disappointed. Where, I ask, is the entrepreneurial vigor of the internet? Somebody make this happen immediately. Harrumph.
July 17, 2012
Gertrude Stein gilt als die “Mutter der verlorenen Generation” und war schon zu ihrer Zeit eine Kultfigur. In ihrem Salon gaben sich Hemingway, Matisse, Picasso, Man Ray, Scott Fitzgerald, Thomas Eliot und viele andere die Klinke in die Hand. Was für eine spannende, kreative Zeit muss das damals in Paris gewesen sein und wie gern hätte ich mal Mäuschen gespielt – bei den Gesprächen in denen Stein Hemingway dazu brachte, seine Reportertätigkeit aufzugeben und Schriftsteller zu werden oder bei den endlosen Sitzungen in denen Picasso Gertrude portraitierte oder bei den vergeblichen Versuchen von James Joyce einen Verlag zu finden.. ach ja..
Doch zurück zu Gertrude, die nicht nur Schriftsteller und Künstler in Paris zusammenbrachte und beeinflusste, sondern auch selber schrieb. Es dauerte jedoch lange, bis man ihr Talent wirklich anerkannte, denn ihr avantgardistischer Schreibstil ist nicht für Jedermann.
Auch das kleine Buch “Die Welt ist rund”, um das es hier gehen soll, ist keine Alltagslektüre. Eigentlich war es eine Auftragsarbeit, ein Kinderbuch (1938 erschienen) - doch es steckt so viel mehr drin!
“Eine Rose ist eine Rose ist eine Rose”
Viele von uns kennen diese Worte, die wenigsten wissen, dass sie von Gertrude Stein stammen. Rose ist in diesem Fall ein kleines, weinerliches Mädchen, das oft singen muss, gern nachdenkt “Kann Rose eine Rose sein wenn ihre Lieblingsfarbe Blau ist?” und sich mit ihrem blauen Stuhl auf die Reise den Berg hinauf macht. Bei ihrem Abenteuer begleiten sie am Anfang ihr Freund Willie, die Hunde Love und Pépé und ein Löwe namens Billie. Oben auf dem Berg angekommen, ritzt sie ihren Namen in den Stamm eines Baumes und weil der Baum rund ist, ritzt sie einfach weiter “Eine Rose ist eine Rose ist eine Rose (..) und dann ist’s einfach da und ich höre nirgends mehr irgendwas das mir in der Nacht Angst macht.”
Erst der Name eines Objektes/einer Person verkörpert das Bild und die damit verbundenen Gefühle – was denken wir beim Namen Rose? Die Wiederholungen sorgen dafür, dass eine Sache im Gedächtnis bleibt – eine Rose ist eine Rose – und sie zeigen für Gertrude eigentlich das Leben auf, denn das Leben ist eine immer wiederkehrende Wiederholung – „alles immer wieder” hat sie in „The Making of Americans” geschrieben. Und sie sagte einmal, dass es ihr Hund Basket mit seinem rhythmischen Milch Schlecken war, der ihr den Unterschied zwischen Prosa und Poesie beigebracht habe. So liest sich das Buch auch: rhythmisch, poetisch, voller Wiederholungen, manchmal so als ob es ein dreijähriges Kind geschrieben hätte.
Es ist eine moderne Geschichte, experimentell, Kubismus in Literaturform – kein Wunder bei ihrer Freundschaft zu Picasso. Doch wie Picassos Werke nicht von allen verstanden werden, verschliesst sich auch Gertrude Steins Werk vielen Menschen. Nicht nur die endlosen Wiederholungen, Reime, ja der Sprechgesang macht die Leser nervös, sondern auch das Weglassen von Satzzeichen.
“Satzzeichen sind nur für schwachsinnige Personen” so wird sie zitiert, würde man diese Hilfestellung weglassen, “fördere man die Selbständigkeit des Lesers beim Verarbeiten der Wortfolgen” - oder man fördert das Desinteresse am Buch – viele Verlage lehnten Steins Werke mit der Begründung ab, dass sich dafür keine Leser fänden. Ihr Kritiker bezeichnen viele ihrer Werke als unlesbar.
Doch Rose wurde veröffentlicht und geblieben ist uns ein wunderschönes Zitat, auch, wenn wir heute kaum noch wissen woher es stammt. Doch dieses Problem habe ich jetzt behoben ;)
“Und manchmal verkaufte jemand eins recht oft verkaufte jeder eins. Willies Vater ging sich eins holen aber welches das durfte Willie aussuchen. Es war komisch wilde Tiere in einem Boot zu sehen ein wildes Tier in einem Ruderboot ein wildes Tier in einem Segelboot ein wildes Tier in einem Motorboot es war schon komisch da in dieser Stadt das heisst es wäre da nicht komisch gewesen es war wie überall woanders nur hatte jeder immer ein wildes Tier bei sich. Männer Frauen und Kinder und sehr oft waren sie auf dem Wasser in einem Boot und das wilde Tier war bei ihnen und natürlich sind wilde Tiere wild natürlich sind sie wild es war schon komisch da”
Nun, wer diese Art des Bücherschreibens komisch findet, ist wohl nicht allein auf der Welt – egal ob auf einem Boot mit einem wilden Tier oder nicht. Aber es ist mit Sicherheit auch ein Erlebnis, sich auf Gertrudes Stil einzulassen. Ich gestehe, dass mir die Beschäftigung mit der Person Gertrude Steins, ihrem Leben, ihren Ideen und Gedanken mehr Spaß gemacht hat als das Lesen dieses Buches, trotzdem möchte ich jetzt nicht mehr missen. Ob ich weitere Werke von Stein lesen werde, weiss ich noch nicht, vielleicht wenn mir der Sinn wieder mal nach fehlenden Satzzeichen steht und ich Lust auf die Avantgarde des 20. Jahrhunderts habe.
4 faszinierte Sterne für die Rose die eine Rose ist
Fun fact: Als man Frau Stein zum wiederholten Male nach dem Sinn des Rosen – Satzes fragte, antwortete sie: “Also hören Sie! Ich bin doch kein Narr. Ich weiß, dass man im täglichen Leben nicht sagt, ,is a …is a … is a …’. Aber ich denke, dass in dieser Zeile die Rose zum ersten Mal seit hundert Jahren in der Dichtung rot ist.” – nachdenkenswert, oder?
Doch zurück zu Gertrude, die nicht nur Schriftsteller und Künstler in Paris zusammenbrachte und beeinflusste, sondern auch selber schrieb. Es dauerte jedoch lange, bis man ihr Talent wirklich anerkannte, denn ihr avantgardistischer Schreibstil ist nicht für Jedermann.
Auch das kleine Buch “Die Welt ist rund”, um das es hier gehen soll, ist keine Alltagslektüre. Eigentlich war es eine Auftragsarbeit, ein Kinderbuch (1938 erschienen) - doch es steckt so viel mehr drin!
“Eine Rose ist eine Rose ist eine Rose”
Viele von uns kennen diese Worte, die wenigsten wissen, dass sie von Gertrude Stein stammen. Rose ist in diesem Fall ein kleines, weinerliches Mädchen, das oft singen muss, gern nachdenkt “Kann Rose eine Rose sein wenn ihre Lieblingsfarbe Blau ist?” und sich mit ihrem blauen Stuhl auf die Reise den Berg hinauf macht. Bei ihrem Abenteuer begleiten sie am Anfang ihr Freund Willie, die Hunde Love und Pépé und ein Löwe namens Billie. Oben auf dem Berg angekommen, ritzt sie ihren Namen in den Stamm eines Baumes und weil der Baum rund ist, ritzt sie einfach weiter “Eine Rose ist eine Rose ist eine Rose (..) und dann ist’s einfach da und ich höre nirgends mehr irgendwas das mir in der Nacht Angst macht.”
Erst der Name eines Objektes/einer Person verkörpert das Bild und die damit verbundenen Gefühle – was denken wir beim Namen Rose? Die Wiederholungen sorgen dafür, dass eine Sache im Gedächtnis bleibt – eine Rose ist eine Rose – und sie zeigen für Gertrude eigentlich das Leben auf, denn das Leben ist eine immer wiederkehrende Wiederholung – „alles immer wieder” hat sie in „The Making of Americans” geschrieben. Und sie sagte einmal, dass es ihr Hund Basket mit seinem rhythmischen Milch Schlecken war, der ihr den Unterschied zwischen Prosa und Poesie beigebracht habe. So liest sich das Buch auch: rhythmisch, poetisch, voller Wiederholungen, manchmal so als ob es ein dreijähriges Kind geschrieben hätte.
Es ist eine moderne Geschichte, experimentell, Kubismus in Literaturform – kein Wunder bei ihrer Freundschaft zu Picasso. Doch wie Picassos Werke nicht von allen verstanden werden, verschliesst sich auch Gertrude Steins Werk vielen Menschen. Nicht nur die endlosen Wiederholungen, Reime, ja der Sprechgesang macht die Leser nervös, sondern auch das Weglassen von Satzzeichen.
“Satzzeichen sind nur für schwachsinnige Personen” so wird sie zitiert, würde man diese Hilfestellung weglassen, “fördere man die Selbständigkeit des Lesers beim Verarbeiten der Wortfolgen” - oder man fördert das Desinteresse am Buch – viele Verlage lehnten Steins Werke mit der Begründung ab, dass sich dafür keine Leser fänden. Ihr Kritiker bezeichnen viele ihrer Werke als unlesbar.
Doch Rose wurde veröffentlicht und geblieben ist uns ein wunderschönes Zitat, auch, wenn wir heute kaum noch wissen woher es stammt. Doch dieses Problem habe ich jetzt behoben ;)
“Und manchmal verkaufte jemand eins recht oft verkaufte jeder eins. Willies Vater ging sich eins holen aber welches das durfte Willie aussuchen. Es war komisch wilde Tiere in einem Boot zu sehen ein wildes Tier in einem Ruderboot ein wildes Tier in einem Segelboot ein wildes Tier in einem Motorboot es war schon komisch da in dieser Stadt das heisst es wäre da nicht komisch gewesen es war wie überall woanders nur hatte jeder immer ein wildes Tier bei sich. Männer Frauen und Kinder und sehr oft waren sie auf dem Wasser in einem Boot und das wilde Tier war bei ihnen und natürlich sind wilde Tiere wild natürlich sind sie wild es war schon komisch da”
Nun, wer diese Art des Bücherschreibens komisch findet, ist wohl nicht allein auf der Welt – egal ob auf einem Boot mit einem wilden Tier oder nicht. Aber es ist mit Sicherheit auch ein Erlebnis, sich auf Gertrudes Stil einzulassen. Ich gestehe, dass mir die Beschäftigung mit der Person Gertrude Steins, ihrem Leben, ihren Ideen und Gedanken mehr Spaß gemacht hat als das Lesen dieses Buches, trotzdem möchte ich jetzt nicht mehr missen. Ob ich weitere Werke von Stein lesen werde, weiss ich noch nicht, vielleicht wenn mir der Sinn wieder mal nach fehlenden Satzzeichen steht und ich Lust auf die Avantgarde des 20. Jahrhunderts habe.
4 faszinierte Sterne für die Rose die eine Rose ist
Fun fact: Als man Frau Stein zum wiederholten Male nach dem Sinn des Rosen – Satzes fragte, antwortete sie: “Also hören Sie! Ich bin doch kein Narr. Ich weiß, dass man im täglichen Leben nicht sagt, ,is a …is a … is a …’. Aber ich denke, dass in dieser Zeile die Rose zum ersten Mal seit hundert Jahren in der Dichtung rot ist.” – nachdenkenswert, oder?
Read
February 18, 2017Books in Search of Children: reports from children:
12 yo boy 'relaxing'
another 'the use of words has you laughing till your sides ache.'
another 'much more *human* than most books.'
13 yo girl 'I think Rose and Willie are wonderful. I like people who really feel things inside, and adore the way they express themselves in their wonderful songs.'
another 13 yo girl 'the story is simple and dreamy. You can forget yourself and live in a separate world while you are reading it.'
younger child 'I love the new style writing because it is the way I, or any other child, would think and write.'
"Of course there were also children who thought 'dumb.'"
Ok, so now I've read it. Thank goodness I had this new edition, with plenty of notes. I did manage to read, *aloud*, the whole thing, and hear the 'music' of it, but I still didn't enjoy it much. It had a little bit of Ruth Krauss vibe to it, and maybe even a bit of Mr. God This is Anna, but only if you're immediately familiar with those will my comment mean anything to you.
It's not "difficult." In that I agree with the commentators. But it is personal; iow it appeals to some readers and not others. If you're artistic, sensitive, philosophical, you're likely to appreciate it more than I did. I'm generally more pragmatic, and I value logic and stoicism, so, um, well, let's just say that I'm not the intended audience, I didn't manage to feel enriched, and I don't feel as if I can rate it.
12 yo boy 'relaxing'
another 'the use of words has you laughing till your sides ache.'
another 'much more *human* than most books.'
13 yo girl 'I think Rose and Willie are wonderful. I like people who really feel things inside, and adore the way they express themselves in their wonderful songs.'
another 13 yo girl 'the story is simple and dreamy. You can forget yourself and live in a separate world while you are reading it.'
younger child 'I love the new style writing because it is the way I, or any other child, would think and write.'
"Of course there were also children who thought 'dumb.'"
Ok, so now I've read it. Thank goodness I had this new edition, with plenty of notes. I did manage to read, *aloud*, the whole thing, and hear the 'music' of it, but I still didn't enjoy it much. It had a little bit of Ruth Krauss vibe to it, and maybe even a bit of Mr. God This is Anna, but only if you're immediately familiar with those will my comment mean anything to you.
It's not "difficult." In that I agree with the commentators. But it is personal; iow it appeals to some readers and not others. If you're artistic, sensitive, philosophical, you're likely to appreciate it more than I did. I'm generally more pragmatic, and I value logic and stoicism, so, um, well, let's just say that I'm not the intended audience, I didn't manage to feel enriched, and I don't feel as if I can rate it.
June 3, 2015
I don't think Gertrude Stein is for me.
The packaging of the book was beautiful! The art was fantastic. However, the blue type on pink paper really strained my eyes.
The packaging of the book was beautiful! The art was fantastic. However, the blue type on pink paper really strained my eyes.
January 21, 2016
Very famous book. Offbeat. Frankly, not my cup of tea.
July 30, 2018
I have a lot of trouble figuring out how to classify this one. I liked it...it's whimsical and sweet and I found the playing with language delectable. But it is long for a kids' book...I wish I had gotten through it in one setting and I'm not sure I'd totally classify it as a kids' book. But I also would totally encourage sharing it with kids because I think it will totally encourage their own writing and drawing and dreaming. In some ways, Stein is a fabulous author for kids because once you get past the pretense the playing with language is pleasing to the ear and fun to read out loud.
Overall, super glad I read it, super glad it exists, but I can see how this is not going to be for everyone. But if no literary experimentation exists, where are we really?
Overall, super glad I read it, super glad it exists, but I can see how this is not going to be for everyone. But if no literary experimentation exists, where are we really?
March 1, 2022
YEARS ago, had friends doing their Masters Thesis on Gertrude Stein. I Did Not Get It. Found it humorless, repetitive. Fast forward 40+ years... a reference to this book made it sound, well, worth reading. Found an audiobook. WOW. WHAT a difference from my theater friends version from way back! enchanting, intriguing. ok, NOT perfect--still things I had trouble with--but for the greater part, MUCH more worth the listen, the thinking about the words--and o, her humor and kindness shone thru!
April 9, 2020
Brilliant.
December 13, 2021
başlamak için iyi bir kitap, sıkılmadan okudum...
December 5, 2019
O livro não é de todo o meu "cup of tea" e cansativo de ler. Apesar disso, gosto muito das ilustrações e do aspeto do livro.
January 8, 2022
An existentialist children's book...
It is written in a very descriptive voice as a child would write. I find myself reading it in parts and not from beginning to end. It is written with a stream of consciousness... flowing from one thought to the next with a repetitive choice of words.
I enjoyed it immensely and it even influenced the children's book I wrote, "Animals Have Their Say"
The plot in "The World is Round" is simple involving a girl named Rose, her cousin Willie, and a blue chair.
Rose climbs a mountain with her blue chair and in a sense discovers who she is..
It is written in a very descriptive voice as a child would write. I find myself reading it in parts and not from beginning to end. It is written with a stream of consciousness... flowing from one thought to the next with a repetitive choice of words.
I enjoyed it immensely and it even influenced the children's book I wrote, "Animals Have Their Say"
The plot in "The World is Round" is simple involving a girl named Rose, her cousin Willie, and a blue chair.
Rose climbs a mountain with her blue chair and in a sense discovers who she is..
May 27, 2022
Me gustó mucho, la edición es bellísima y me sentí muy atraído por la forma en que está escrito. No sabría analizarlo más allá de decir que me gustó jeje
August 26, 2017
„Земното кълбо се върти”, и то понякога с такава скорост, че всичките точки, тирета и запетайки да се разхвърчат из дълбините на космоса! Новото предложение на издателство „Лист” от серията „Детски шедьоври от велики писатели” ще хвърли в ужас и потрес всеки педант на пунктуацията, но тук (д)ефектът е напълно целенасочен. Грабвайте книжката на Гертруд и гарантирано ще си глътнете граматиката! Прочетете ревюто на "Книжни Криле":
https://knijnikrile.wordpress.com/201...
https://knijnikrile.wordpress.com/201...
December 11, 2023
My six year old daughter sat seriously under a table reading this book when she picked it up at a used book fair. She asked me to buy it, saying: “I don’t understand it but I like it.”
Sounds about right -
Sounds about right -
October 7, 2008
an amazing book that is part children's story, part existential journey---Rose is on a quest to discover if she would still be Rose if she had a different name. Wonderful illustrations and a great sing-song writing style by Gertrude Stein....
"Rose was her name and would she have been Rose if her name had not been Rose. She used to think and then she used to think again.
Would she have been Rose if her name had not been Rose and would she have been Rose if she had been a twin.
Rose was her name all the same and her father's name was Bob and her mother's name was Kate and her uncle's name was William and her aunt's name was Gloria and her grandmother's name was Lucy. They all had names and her name was Rose, but would she have been she used to cry about it would she have been Rose if her name had not been Rose.
I tell you at this time the world was all round and you could go on it around and around."
"Rose was her name and would she have been Rose if her name had not been Rose. She used to think and then she used to think again.
Would she have been Rose if her name had not been Rose and would she have been Rose if she had been a twin.
Rose was her name all the same and her father's name was Bob and her mother's name was Kate and her uncle's name was William and her aunt's name was Gloria and her grandmother's name was Lucy. They all had names and her name was Rose, but would she have been she used to cry about it would she have been Rose if her name had not been Rose.
I tell you at this time the world was all round and you could go on it around and around."
December 12, 2013
a rose is a rose is a rose. Gertrude Stein loved to say and to use this. This fascinating little book written by Gertrude Stein and illustrated by Clement Hurd is a beautiful looking book, printed in rose colored pages and blue lettering. Meant as a children book, I found the book is better as a collectors item. An item of an era, and the example of a daring and innovative author. One cannot escape the modernist feeling of this book. I almost want to rip its pages out and frame them.
The actual story has various levels and is a good exercise for reading out loud. I don't have small children anymore, but I think my kids would have appreciate a couple of evenings of this book read out loud. Its got rhythm and musicality, but the jury is still out as far as the story is concerned. I may review this entry after I read it to a child.
The actual story has various levels and is a good exercise for reading out loud. I don't have small children anymore, but I think my kids would have appreciate a couple of evenings of this book read out loud. Its got rhythm and musicality, but the jury is still out as far as the story is concerned. I may review this entry after I read it to a child.
January 12, 2014
Having just finished reading Antoine De Saint Exupery's "The Little Prince", I found myself reading yet another story for both children and adults that approaches a wonder-filled child and their search for who they are or where they belong. "A Rose is a Rose is a Rose is a Rose" is a popular Stein-ism that finds itself encircling a trunk when Rose, the main character, becomes slightly overwhelmed by her journey up a mountain. Not to be cryptic, but I certainly found this trek up a mountain to also be death. Once she gets up to the mountain to sit in her blue chair, she tries very hard to stay in that chair. She sees a bright light. I'll admit, the ending was abrupt and convenient, but I enjoyed the read. Also, if you plan on reading this book, don't forget Stein's modernist writing full of puns, rhymes, endless repetition, and lack of proper punctuation.
July 26, 2008
I love Gertrude Stein. I learned to write from reading Virginia Woolf and Gertrude Stein, so there is a sense of gratitude and wonderment and pleasure here that I won't ever outgrow. That said, there is much Stein I have not read and I haven't read any Stein in a while.
This one is a children's book, and I really want to use it literally as that: when I finish it, I want to send it to my mother-in-law and ask, beg, plead, with her to read it aloud to her grandchildren. The prose has all the non-linearity of children telling a story and there is something captivating about this non-goal-oriented experience of literature, as of the world, that needs to be encouraged and enjoyed.
This one is a children's book, and I really want to use it literally as that: when I finish it, I want to send it to my mother-in-law and ask, beg, plead, with her to read it aloud to her grandchildren. The prose has all the non-linearity of children telling a story and there is something captivating about this non-goal-oriented experience of literature, as of the world, that needs to be encouraged and enjoyed.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 109 reviews