What do you think?
Rate this book
The Tale That Killed Emily Knorr
A little, amazing jewel by Milorad Pavic about the dangerousness of words. Pay attention: by reading this novel written in 2005, you could be killed! Are you so brave?
In the short novel “The Tale that Killed Emily Knorr”, storytelling (the story) kills the listener (the reader). Thus literature, with Pavić, becomes dangerous to the reader.
“In this book the author is accused of being able to kill with a story. Off course this is not possible, but when the world wants to make somebody look bad, then all means are used. In my novel the story is, after all, able to kill. It can kill the one that created it, that is to say – its writer.” - Milorad Pavic
" ...over the course of its six short chapters, we witness meditations on stories, on the beliefs that people have in the efficacy of the written charms (even today we see remnants of this in the signs that many families post in their homes regarding warmth and charity), and the power of words to create and transform images. Like most fables, it has a certain charm to it, a sense that it is not the mystery that is important as much as it is what creates a mystery out of words that possesses our thoughts as we read it." - Vaguely Borgesian, 2011 Reviews
In the short novel “The Tale that Killed Emily Knorr”, storytelling (the story) kills the listener (the reader). Thus literature, with Pavić, becomes dangerous to the reader.
“In this book the author is accused of being able to kill with a story. Off course this is not possible, but when the world wants to make somebody look bad, then all means are used. In my novel the story is, after all, able to kill. It can kill the one that created it, that is to say – its writer.” - Milorad Pavic
" ...over the course of its six short chapters, we witness meditations on stories, on the beliefs that people have in the efficacy of the written charms (even today we see remnants of this in the signs that many families post in their homes regarding warmth and charity), and the power of words to create and transform images. Like most fables, it has a certain charm to it, a sense that it is not the mystery that is important as much as it is what creates a mystery out of words that possesses our thoughts as we read it." - Vaguely Borgesian, 2011 Reviews
- GenresShort Stories
24 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 1, 2005
About the author
Milorad Pavić
116 books578 followersMilorad Pavić was a Serbian poet, prose writer, translator, and literary historian.
Pavić wrote five novels which were translated into English: Dictionary of the Khazars: A Lexicon Novel, Landscape Painted With Tea, Inner Side of the Wind, Last Love in Constantinople and Unique Item as well as many short stories not in English translation.
Pavić wrote five novels which were translated into English: Dictionary of the Khazars: A Lexicon Novel, Landscape Painted With Tea, Inner Side of the Wind, Last Love in Constantinople and Unique Item as well as many short stories not in English translation.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
January 3, 2019
The author narrates his three meetings with a certain man with rosy cheeks, in Barcelona, in Toronto, and at the French countryside by the river Rhone. This man's stories can apparently kill people, one of the listeners within 24 hours. At a mere twenty pages, and told over six episodes, Pavić spices it up with actual characters of Margaret Atwood, Salman Rushdie and few more from the literary world, and oodles of trivia references and myths. I really loved the bit about the female language 'Neu-shu' and the reference to the Tower of Babylon.
As far I could understand, Pavić leads us through this multilayered story to force our cognition to relate a number of disconnected events, hearsays, dream sequences, myths, and unreliable narration to conclude that words can indeed kill people. Here the notion of 'kill' is metaphorical and means the death of logic and thus the onset of dilemma. Yes - Pavić did kill me by the last page.
From now onward, I will try to keep an eye out for (1) any man with rosy cheeks, (2) anyone named Emily Knorr and (3) dream sequences regressing to form into the real world.
As far I could understand, Pavić leads us through this multilayered story to force our cognition to relate a number of disconnected events, hearsays, dream sequences, myths, and unreliable narration to conclude that words can indeed kill people. Here the notion of 'kill' is metaphorical and means the death of logic and thus the onset of dilemma. Yes - Pavić did kill me by the last page.
From now onward, I will try to keep an eye out for (1) any man with rosy cheeks, (2) anyone named Emily Knorr and (3) dream sequences regressing to form into the real world.
Currently Reading
September 26, 2013this is English btw (Tale that Killed Emily Knorr) and can be had at Amazon; novella of about 20 odd pages but very engaging and worth for the superb style of the author (and noting that it is among his later works before his passing away in 2008, so that adds even more value)
July 25, 2017
Delightful, clever tale by a master storyteller.
Read
April 16, 2024Bought by mistake. I thought it was a different book from Paviç that sounded very interesting.
It's only 24 pages and so I decided why not.
It's hard to believe the amount of filler Paviç relied on to get this thing up to 24 pages.
It's about 15 of actual cryptic story with a lot of name-dropping.
It's only 24 pages and so I decided why not.
It's hard to believe the amount of filler Paviç relied on to get this thing up to 24 pages.
It's about 15 of actual cryptic story with a lot of name-dropping.
July 9, 2023
Master of storytelling, Milorad Pavić, wrote this little short story which is constructed as a crossway between reality and legend/dream/story. It left me wondering what everything meant, if it was real, what was real...it reminded me a bit of a zen story.
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews