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Carta de una desconocida / Amok / Una noche fantástica / Terrible Secreto
189 pages, Hardcover
Published April 1, 1998
About the author
Stefan Zweig
2,575 books11.3k followersStefan Zweig was one of the world's most famous writers during the 1920s and 1930s, especially in the U.S., South America, and Europe. He produced novels, plays, biographies, and journalist pieces. Among his most famous works are Beware of Pity, Letter from an Unknown Woman, and Mary, Queen of Scotland and the Isles. He and his second wife committed suicide in 1942.
Zweig studied in Austria, France, and Germany before settling in Salzburg in 1913. In 1934, driven into exile by the Nazis, he emigrated to England and then, in 1940, to Brazil by way of New York. Finding only growing loneliness and disillusionment in their new surroundings, he and his second wife committed suicide.
Zweig's interest in psychology and the teachings of Sigmund Freud led to his most characteristic work, the subtle portrayal of character. Zweig's essays include studies of Honoré de Balzac, Charles Dickens, and Fyodor Dostoevsky (Drei Meister, 1920; Three Masters) and of Friedrich Hölderlin, Heinrich von Kleist, and Friedrich Nietzsche (Der Kampf mit dem Dämon, 1925; Master Builders). He achieved popularity with Sternstunden der Menschheit (1928; The Tide of Fortune), five historical portraits in miniature. He wrote full-scale, intuitive rather than objective, biographies of the French statesman Joseph Fouché (1929), Mary Stuart (1935), and others. His stories include those in Verwirrung der Gefühle (1925; Conflicts). He also wrote a psychological novel, Ungeduld des Herzens (1938; Beware of Pity), and translated works of Charles Baudelaire, Paul Verlaine, and Emile Verhaeren.
Most recently, his works provided the inspiration for 2014 film The Grand Budapest Hotel.
Zweig studied in Austria, France, and Germany before settling in Salzburg in 1913. In 1934, driven into exile by the Nazis, he emigrated to England and then, in 1940, to Brazil by way of New York. Finding only growing loneliness and disillusionment in their new surroundings, he and his second wife committed suicide.
Zweig's interest in psychology and the teachings of Sigmund Freud led to his most characteristic work, the subtle portrayal of character. Zweig's essays include studies of Honoré de Balzac, Charles Dickens, and Fyodor Dostoevsky (Drei Meister, 1920; Three Masters) and of Friedrich Hölderlin, Heinrich von Kleist, and Friedrich Nietzsche (Der Kampf mit dem Dämon, 1925; Master Builders). He achieved popularity with Sternstunden der Menschheit (1928; The Tide of Fortune), five historical portraits in miniature. He wrote full-scale, intuitive rather than objective, biographies of the French statesman Joseph Fouché (1929), Mary Stuart (1935), and others. His stories include those in Verwirrung der Gefühle (1925; Conflicts). He also wrote a psychological novel, Ungeduld des Herzens (1938; Beware of Pity), and translated works of Charles Baudelaire, Paul Verlaine, and Emile Verhaeren.
Most recently, his works provided the inspiration for 2014 film The Grand Budapest Hotel.
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Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
January 22, 2026
La meua primera ressenya, que fort:
He de confessar que el motiu per el qual no li done cinc estrelles és perquè el tercer conte no l'he acabat, m'ha paregut tediós i he passat al següent.
Llevat d'això, en general son uns relats molt entretinguts. Cada protagonista és una persona completament diferent (una jove que ha perdut al fill i està terriblement enamorada, un metge un poc loco, un tio que li dona per apostar en carreres de cavalls i un crio malaltís que vol evitar que sa mare se lie en un sinvergüenza) i la veritat que narrar tres veus tan diferents i de manera tan genuina demostra que Zweig val la pena llegir-lo.
I a més, el llibre que m'he llegit era del iaio i m'ha sorprès disfrutar d'una traducció que no m'ha semblat desfasada.
Ja està,
Ciao!
He de confessar que el motiu per el qual no li done cinc estrelles és perquè el tercer conte no l'he acabat, m'ha paregut tediós i he passat al següent.
Llevat d'això, en general son uns relats molt entretinguts. Cada protagonista és una persona completament diferent (una jove que ha perdut al fill i està terriblement enamorada, un metge un poc loco, un tio que li dona per apostar en carreres de cavalls i un crio malaltís que vol evitar que sa mare se lie en un sinvergüenza) i la veritat que narrar tres veus tan diferents i de manera tan genuina demostra que Zweig val la pena llegir-lo.
I a més, el llibre que m'he llegit era del iaio i m'ha sorprès disfrutar d'una traducció que no m'ha semblat desfasada.
Ja està,
Ciao!
August 1, 2020
Relato dramático perteneciente al recopilatorio de siete relatos de la editorial Acantilado, titulado "Noche Fantástica". No confundir con la "Noche Fantástica" publicada en 1922, la historia más larga escrita por Zweig, con la técnica literaria de simular que un editor publica la experiencia escrita por el protagonista.
Otra maravillosa historia de Zweig, ésta vez con una hermosa lección donde el dinero jamás sustituirá el hecho de hacer feliz a los demás. Un relato breve, que por desgracia pasará inadvertido por la confusión de haber sido titulado igual que otra de las obras del autor. De muy recomendada lectura.
Otra maravillosa historia de Zweig, ésta vez con una hermosa lección donde el dinero jamás sustituirá el hecho de hacer feliz a los demás. Un relato breve, que por desgracia pasará inadvertido por la confusión de haber sido titulado igual que otra de las obras del autor. De muy recomendada lectura.
September 27, 2025
Mi primer acercamiento a la obra de Stephan Zweig. Este libro reúne cuatro relatos, los cuales tienen en común a protagonistas obnubilados por sus sentimientos y pasiones. Mi favorito fue “Amok” la historia de un médico inglés quien trabajando en la India conoce a una hermosa, altiva y misteriosa mujer que va a solicitar un aborto clandestino a su consulta. Tras rechazarla, cae en un estado febril de obsesión por ella y hará todo por encontrarla.
January 26, 2026
Stefan Zweig’s short stories have a very particular effect on the reader. Even though each story stands on its own and can be read independently, together they feel like part of the same emotional universe. Different characters, settings, and situations, yet the same intense psychological tension runs through all of them. You can always feel that you are reading Zweig.
None of the stories surprised me with their darkness, mainly because Zweig consistently explores disturbing emotional states: desire, obsession, repression, guilt, and loss of control. Amok is probably the most openly disturbing, especially considering the abuse of power by the doctor and how guilt slowly destroys him. Still, this darkness never feels gratuitous, it feels deeply human and intentional.
The story that stayed with me the most was Letter from an Unknown Woman. It left me with a strong feeling of unease. The idea of receiving a letter that suddenly reveals an entire hidden life, a woman who loved you for years, a son you never knew existed, and both of them disappearing at the same time, is deeply unsettling. The emotional imbalance between the narrator and the woman, and the fact that even at the end he barely remembers her, makes the story incredibly sad and powerful. The final revelation about the anonymous birthday flowers is devastating in a very quiet way, and it lingers long after the story ends.
What I appreciate most about Zweig is how his characters often spiral from desire into obsession, then into loss of control and guilt. These stories rarely offer closure or redemption. Instead, they end with a painful sense that realization comes too late. That lack of closure is precisely what makes them so effective, you finish the story still thinking about it, almost wishing it could end differently.
Overall, this collection confirms why Stefan Zweig is such a master of psychological fiction. His stories are not comforting, but they are deeply honest, intense, and beautifully written. Long after finishing the book, the emotional tension remains.
None of the stories surprised me with their darkness, mainly because Zweig consistently explores disturbing emotional states: desire, obsession, repression, guilt, and loss of control. Amok is probably the most openly disturbing, especially considering the abuse of power by the doctor and how guilt slowly destroys him. Still, this darkness never feels gratuitous, it feels deeply human and intentional.
The story that stayed with me the most was Letter from an Unknown Woman. It left me with a strong feeling of unease. The idea of receiving a letter that suddenly reveals an entire hidden life, a woman who loved you for years, a son you never knew existed, and both of them disappearing at the same time, is deeply unsettling. The emotional imbalance between the narrator and the woman, and the fact that even at the end he barely remembers her, makes the story incredibly sad and powerful. The final revelation about the anonymous birthday flowers is devastating in a very quiet way, and it lingers long after the story ends.
What I appreciate most about Zweig is how his characters often spiral from desire into obsession, then into loss of control and guilt. These stories rarely offer closure or redemption. Instead, they end with a painful sense that realization comes too late. That lack of closure is precisely what makes them so effective, you finish the story still thinking about it, almost wishing it could end differently.
Overall, this collection confirms why Stefan Zweig is such a master of psychological fiction. His stories are not comforting, but they are deeply honest, intense, and beautifully written. Long after finishing the book, the emotional tension remains.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
July 16, 2017
Dos de la novelas cortas (o cuentos largos) más famosos de Stefan Zweig, donde se revela su profundo conocimiento del carácter humano y de la psicología de los sentimientos.
Fáciles de leer y difíciles de olvidar, por la maestría de su planteamiento y desarrollo. "Amok" es casi un thriller que algunos han comparado a las mejores obras de Poe.
Excelente traducción la ya clásica de Editorial Juventud.
Fáciles de leer y difíciles de olvidar, por la maestría de su planteamiento y desarrollo. "Amok" es casi un thriller que algunos han comparado a las mejores obras de Poe.
Excelente traducción la ya clásica de Editorial Juventud.
August 2, 2024
Historias entrañables que evidencian de forma literaria y desgarradora el dolor humano .
Tiene ese sello que los libros de Stefan Zweig dejan en quienes los hemos leído
Tiene ese sello que los libros de Stefan Zweig dejan en quienes los hemos leído
August 5, 2017
'Carta de una desconocida' es sublime. Zweig un maestro.
July 23, 2014
Una mujer desesperada, dos hombres aislados del mundo (aunque en diversas circunstancias) y un niño que deja de serlo, son retratados de forma precisa y profunda por Stefan Zweig, con una aguda comprensión de los fenómenos psíquicos que acontecen a sus personajes, los dibuja con maestría y buen pulso.
Los cuatro relatos que componen este volumen son fieles retratos de la condición humana en distintos ámbitos, y quizás por eso a algunos Zweig les parecerá un escritorcillo menor que se ocupa de nimiedades. Sin embargo, es fácil descubrir en su literatura un algo de uno mismo, aunque sea difícil aceptarlo.
Los cuatro relatos que componen este volumen son fieles retratos de la condición humana en distintos ámbitos, y quizás por eso a algunos Zweig les parecerá un escritorcillo menor que se ocupa de nimiedades. Sin embargo, es fácil descubrir en su literatura un algo de uno mismo, aunque sea difícil aceptarlo.
October 11, 2014
Los sentimientos de una mujer y su interior. desgarrador y sublime
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews