The Last Bell

by Johannes Urzidil, David Burnett (Translation)

A maid who is unexpectedly left her wealthy employers' worldly possessions, when they flee the country after the Nazi occupation; a loyal bank clerk, who steals a Renaissance portrait of a Spanish noblewoman, and falls into troublesome love with her; a middle-aged travel agent, who is perhaps the least well-travelled man in the city and advises his clients from what he has read in books, anxiously awaits his looming honeymoon; a widowed villager, whose 'magnetic' (or perhaps 'crazy') twelve-year-old daughter witnesses a disturbing event; and a tiny village thrown into civil war by the disappearance of a freshly baked cheesecake - these stories about the tremendous upheaval which results when the ordinary encounters the unexpected are vividly told, with both humour and humanity. This is the first ever English publication of these both literally and metaphorically enchanting Bohemian tales, by one of the great overlooked writers of the twentieth century.

Genres: Short Stories, Fiction, Czech Literature, 20th Century, German Literature, Classics, Literary Fiction

192 pages, Paperback

First published April 25, 2017

Reviews

[Vit Babenco · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Last Bell is a collection of five exquisite stories written in the style of Bohemian school and echoing the voices of such masters as Gustav Meyrink and Franz Kafka.
In the the title story during the Nazi occupation the former maid is betrayed by her sister who also has stolen her money so the former servant girl contemplates revenge…

I hear the church bell ring at the nearby cemetery. It’s odd enough that it has a clock at all, because isn’t that where time stops? But maybe it’s so the dead will know how long they have to wait till resurrection.

The Duchess of Albanera is a tale of a stolen portrait…

Schaschek toasted the portrait, thinking this old-fashioned gesture would be timeless enough to seem familiar to the Duchess. Then he began to improvise on his violin. There was still some sheet music open on the music stand, but ever since his life had changed he didn’t follow the music anymore. He let the violin play on its own terms. Eleonor listened attentively to this miracle, indeed it almost seemed that her otherwise open eyes were now half closed.

The Duchess tells him the story of her life… He is literally in love with her… But the theft has a lot of dire consequences…
In Siegelmann’s Journeys the main character tells his bride yarns about his imagined journeys so his honeymoon ends in disaster…

Alas, his ship was in a bottle. He no longer knew how he’d gotten it inside. And to get it out, he’d have to break the bottle.

Borderland is about a young girl who could talk to plants and summon up the rain…

At other times she would suddenly stop in front of a fern, study the leaves for a while then say, “Rain!” And although the sky had been clear and bright, it would soon get dark and rain would fall.

In Where the Valley Ends the negligible occurrence becomes a cause of the deadly enmity…

The conflict persisted. No woman spread out her laundry behind the house to bleach it in the sun or baked bread in the brick oven behind the barn without shouting something hurtful or accusatory at a neighbor across the stream.

Even a butterfly innocently fluttering its wings can cause a hurricane.

[Gill · Rating 3 out of 5]

'The Last Bell' by Johannes Urzidil

3 stars/ 6 out of 10

Johannes Urzidil is a writer whose collected stories have not previously been translated into English. Born in Prague, and eventually settling in New York, much of his work links to his Bohemian heritage. In addition to translating these stories, David Burnett also provides an informative introduction.

There are 5 short stories/ novellas in this collection. I was especially impressed with the title story, 'The Last Bell'. This is a first-person narrative, told in a devastatingly simple manner. I also enjoyed 'Borderland', with its links to Adalbert Stifter. Of the other 3 stories, I did not engage at all with 'The Duchess of Albanera'.

I was very interested in reading and learning more about Johannes Urzidil, and am grateful that David Burnett's translation is enabling an English-speaking audience to have access to his work.

Thank you to Pushkin Press, and to NetGalley for an ARC.

[Ends of the Word · Rating 4 out of 5]

One does not escape from despair, hopelessness, suicide by demonstrating with great diligence and accuracy how nauseating, shallow, stale and fruitless all our actions are, but by trying to believe in life by virtue of the absurd

This extract, taken from an essay he wrote in 1965, is a good indication of the writing philosophy of Czech author Johannes Urzidil (1896-1970). In his introduction to this anthology of five short stories, translator David Burnett compares Urzidil's style with that of his friend Kafka, bringing out the contrast between Kafka's "quintessentially tortured soul" and Urzidil's writing, which "exudes a sense of certainty, the warmth of a well-ordered universe". Reading this comment, one might be forgiven for expecting this anthology to provide mere escapist fare. Nothing could be further from the truth. Each of the stories centres around outcasts - individuals whose decisions trigger disastrous consequences which they could never have predicted. And the personal woes of these characters are looked at squarely in the face and presented as a reflection of the wider human predicament - that messy thing called Life.

Take the narrator of "The Last Bell". She is a maid who has an unexpected windfall when her employers, a Jewish couple, flee the Nazi occupation, leaving her mistress of their apartment and all their worldly goods. Unsurprisingly, her joys are short-lived and her tragedy becomes symbolic of all the victims of Nazi barbarity. (Urzidil himself fled to England after the German occupation in 1939, eventually settling in the United States). In "The Duchess of Albanera", the protagonist is an introvert who, uncharacteristically acting upon an unexplained impulse, steals a portrait from a gallery, blissfully unaware (until too late) that this act of folly has torn the gallery guard's family asunder. What starts as a surreal romp ends with a philosophical meditation about a world peopled by the "guilty-innocent and the innocent-guilty".

So what is it that makes Urzidil's writing so life-affirming? For starters, there's the humour which always bubbles right beneath the surface. It is a humour which can also be dark and bleak, but is rarely cynical and never cruel. It is difficult to dislike Urzidil's mumbling, fumbling, bumbling protagonists - they might be figures of fun but their portrayal is always sympathetic. There's also a humanity to his characters - even the most heartless of them (for instance the Nazi officials of "The Last Bell") are never mere caricatures.

Two of the stories featured in this anthology - "Borderland" and "Where the Valley Ends" - and part of a third - "Siegelmann's Journeys" - are set in the forests of Bohemia at an unspecified period prior to the two World Wars. It is a timeless, fairytale backdrop which owes much to German/Austrian Romanticism. Indeed, Urzidil himself makes explicit reference to the works of Adalbert Stifter and I was reminded of the mysterious, magical atmosphere of The Jews' Beech. "Where the Valley Ends" is a cautionary tale about the theft of a cheesecake which brings about discord between the two small communities on either bank of the river. Typically, what appears a rather banal premise becomes an excuse for conceptual ruminations about justice and peace: Nothing makes a just man more sad than complete triumph, since he knows how convoluted justice and injustice are at bottom, and that even the most righteous person has only half a case before God... In "Borderland" - a story praised by Hermann Hesse on its publication - Urzidil skirts the supernatural with a portrayal of a "magnetic" girl who seems to be able to commune with Nature, until the awakening of her sexuality. It is a universal, mythical theme - redolent of Adam and Eve's expulsion from the Garden of Eden, or Enkidu's loss of innocence in the Epic of Gilgamesh. This story will haunt me for a long time.

A final thought - English is often hailed as a modern-day lingua franca, a language which acts as a bridge across the globe. Yet, there are deserving authors who seem to fall through the cracks. It is sobering to discover that Urzidil's stories have been translated from German into Czech, Spanish, French and Italian but this is the first-ever collection of his work to be published in English. So kudos to translator David Burnett and Pushkin Press for bringing these little gems to a wider public, and in such an attractive edition to boot.

4.5*

[Kirsty · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read Johannes Urzidil's The Last Bell for the Czech Republic (Czechia...?) stop on my Around the World in 80 Books challenge. I love stories of Old Bohemia, and purchased a couple of collections when I visited Prague a few years ago. The introduction to this volume is articulate and informative. When exposed to the quality and beauty of the chosen stories here, I was most surprised that Urzidil's work had not been translated into English before. I could hardly put The Last Bell down; the stories are varied and strange, but all are beguiling, and the translation is beautifully fluid. Urzidil's writing is intelligent and interestingly sculpted, and I very much look forward to reading more of his work in future.

[Mandy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Johannes Urzidil (1896-1970) was a German-Czech writer, a friend of Kafka and Max Brod, who was forced to flee from Prague after the German Occupation in 1939, escaping first to the UK and finally settling in the US. He’s largely unknown to an English-speaking readership, but has now been translated for the first time and Pushkin Press have now published 5 of his stories in this slim volume. None of them made much of an impression on me, except the title story about a young maidservant who takes over her employers’ apartment and possessions when, as Jews, they are deported. This seemed to me to be a moving and complex story about coping with the German invasion, but the other stories I found rather whimsical – although admittedly well-written – and forgettable. However, it’s always of interest to discover a previously unknown author and I enjoyed reading these stories for that reason if none other.

[Marjorie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Johannes Urzidil belonged to the literary circle in Prague that included both Franz Kafka, Franz Werfel and Max Brod. When Czechoslovakia was occupied by Nazi Germany in 1939, he came to the United States. He was living in the US in the 50’s and 60’s when these short stories were written. He was awarded quite a few literary prizes during his career. The asteroid 70679 Urzidil was named after him. Although his books were published in many other countries, his work has been overlooked here. This is the first publication of The Last Bell in the United States so it’s quite a literary event. The stories are mostly about the outcome of ordinary events when something unexpected happens.

“The Last Bell”
Marska is a fortunate maid. Her Jewish master and mistress have fled the Nazis and have left all of their belongings and money to her. However, her fortune takes a turn when she invites her sister Joska to live with her and her fortune becomes a hinderance. This tale is the saddest in the book, although it’s written in a light manner and humorous manner. The author’s humor makes the horror of this story all that more real.

“The Duchess of Albanera”
This is a fantastical story of the theft of a painting and the precarious slip of his sanity as the thief falls in love with the painting.

“Siegelmann’s Journey”
This is a moralistic tale of a travel agent who has never traveled himself but can spin a complicated web of lies that he gets tangled in.

“Borderland”
Ottilie is a gifted young girl who finds it difficult to conform to ordinary life. She witnesses an event that plunges her into despair. This magical tale is my favorite in the book.

“Where the Valley Ends”
A tale of how discord among neighbors over a stolen cheesecake can lead to war. Such a small incident grows completely out of proportion.


This book was given to me by the publisher in return for an honest review.

[Richard · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very enjoyable collection of stories, filled with humour and pathos.

[Juli Rahel · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have related the reason for this blog's name before, but somehow Pushkin Press continues to give me reasons to do so over and over again. So, I named this blog A Universe in Words because for me reading has always been about learning, discovering and exploring. I grew up reading books in three different languages and this set me on a path of continuously looking for books in other languages, realising there are whole worlds, universes even, out there waiting for me. And thankfully to publishers like Pushkin Press, who work hard to bring previously untranslated works into English, this blog and I can keep going. Which brings me to my latest translated read, The Last Bell, which is a delightful collection of short stories. Thanks to Pushkin Press and Netgalley for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

The Last Bell contains five stories, selected by David Burnett from a variety of collections written by Urzidil over time. Burnett himself, in his informative introduction, gets to the very point of what makes these stories so touching and what links them together:
'...these stories illustrate this very point: that no one can act or be in this world, without becoming guilty - a very unmodern, biblical notion in our ideal world of transparency and accountability.'
It might not sound very enticing, but I was fascinated by this concept of, perhaps, "guilt by association" which cropped up in each and every story. The collection's first, and eponymous, story 'The Last Bell' is perhaps the finest example. A Czech maid in Nazi-occupied Prague feels burdened by the things she is given or told by others. Whereas she herself hardly acts, except for once, her very presence in the story's situations makes her complicit, makes her guilty, and she does not know how to deal with the weight of this guilt. In 'The Duchess of Albanera' we see a man who cannot face the unintended consequences of a single, mindless thought, whereas the third story, 'Siegelmann's Journeys' gives us a man very aware of and dreading the consequences he will have to face. The final two stories, 'Borderland', probably my favourite in The Last Bell, and 'Where the Valley Ends', Urzidil himself appears in the stories as an unnamed outsider, an objective observer, who sees the unintended victims of other people's actions and beliefs. Although it is perhaps not the most optimistic of messages, it is a very true one. Perhaps in our world we should all be a little bit more aware that none of us are blameless, that we are all in some way guilty. Perhaps it will make us kinder if we learn this lesson.

Urzidil's writing is surprisingly fluid. This may sound like a backhanded compliment, but once Burnett's introduction made me aware of Urzidil's links to Kafka I was slightly concerned. Although Kafka is doubtlessly masterful, he is also highly complex. Urzidil's stories are compact and crafted in a way that gives hints but unravels at its own, perfect, pace. His writing, however, flows easily and evocatively. There are moments of absolute beauty in his stories, phrases that are just so true. Let me give you a little gem:
'History books know nothing about real life, least o all about the life of a woman.'
How true. Urzidil doesn't shy away from the darkness in life, but also lingers in those moments of beauty that life bestows upon us. Especially in 'Borderland' he describes Czech woodlands in such a beautiful way I want to book tickets to Prague right now. Burnett does a wonderful job at translating his work into English, capturing both the preciseness and tentativeness of Urzidil's language. I am incredibly grateful to Pushkin Press for casting light upon another author who deserves to be known. I will definitely be looking for his work in German as well, however.

Whereas usually I need a break between stories, Urzidil's The Last Bell flowed so easily from one story to the next that I couldn't help but be spellbound until I had finished the collection. His stories are odes to the Prague he left behind, but are also truly human stories. I'd recommend this to fans of short stories and European literature.


For full review: http://universeinwords.blogspot.com/2...

[Ostap Bender · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book represents the best of Pushkin Press: a very enjoyable set of short stories from lesser-known author Johannes Urzidil, whose works had never been translated into English before. Urzidil has such a pleasurable style – direct and light, with elements of humor, but also containing darker observations about humanity and absurdity.

There are five stories here, and each is memorable. They include a maid given a fortune from her employers when they flee the Nazis (The Last Bell), a man stealing a painting of a lady from an art gallery on an impulse and having conversations with her (The Duchess of Albanera), a travel agent who knows everything about the cities and countries of the world but has never been anywhere himself (Siegelmann’s Journeys), a girl who has an almost godlike power to communicate with the natural things of the world (Borderland), and a river valley which is bitterly divided by petty arguments between those living on its left and right banks (Where the Valley Ends). The quality level throughout is high, with each being four stars on its own, and ‘Siegelmann’s Journeys’ perhaps a bit higher, and my favorite.

I would definitely read more of Urzidil should more of his works be translated, and think this would be a great book to read while traveling in the Czech Republic.

Quotes:
On finding meaning in life, this from the introduction, quoting his essay ‘Literature as Creative Responsibility’:
“One does not escape from despair, helplessness, suicide by demonstrating with greater diligence and accuracy how nauseating, shallow, stale and fruitless all our actions are, but by trying to believe in life by virtue of the absurd.”

On individuality, from ‘Borderland’:
“In what way does a person die? When his heart stops beating: that’s probably the most familiar way. Or by becoming like everyone else.”

On meeting someone, from ‘Siegelmann’s Journeys’:
“If a human being wants to live he has to forget himself. Profound encounters take place unexpectedly. And so it is only natural that one day Magda’s gaze would come to rest on Siegelmann and - in spite of her background, her upbringing, her suspiciousness - would linger there. There might be gazes we can control. But there are also ones that command us.”

On music, from ‘The Last Bell’:
“Music is only good if, first of all, it makes you weep, second, if it makes you die laughing, and third, if it gets your legs and arms, your bosom and rear end moving and whirls you through the room like a maniac.”

On nature, from ‘Where the Valley Ends’:
“Mother Nature, so the poet taught, ennobles human beings. She hints at what is essential, and all of her endeavors aim to eternalize the ephemeral.”

On war and man’s nature, from ‘Where the Valley Ends’:
“No war, it seemed to me, had ever really come to an end; at some level it always continued even after it was over. Because a war is quickly divorced from its immediate causes, acquires a life and momentum of its own. It might be possible to refute this philosophically, depending on whether you view peace or war as the primary state; in the history of human activity, peace has always been a desirable aim, but, alas, has never played a leading role.”

[Kent · Rating 3 out of 5]

After reading the spectacular House of the Nine Devils from the same author (and translator), I decided to reach for this book to keep the momentum going. I can't say I was disappointed, the stories were interesting, less auto-biographical, but didn't grab me the way the last volume did. I once again must commend the translator, David Burnett. As a translator myself, I find myself subconsciously evaluating all translations. Here it seems like there is no translator involved, which is the highest commendation I can give. I am looking forward to his translation of the Prague Triptych by the same author.

[Linda C · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a collection of 5 stories by a Czech writer originally published between 1956 and 1968. Each has quirky characters, often with a sort of moral at its core. From a maid who gets an unexpected windfall to a village that falls apart over a stolen cheesecake, one event seems to be the thing that changes everything. Interesting writing.

[Jen · Rating 3 out of 5]

DNF
Enjoyed the first two stories in this collection - 'The Last Bell' and 'The Duchess of Albanera' - but the remaining three I couldn't get into.

[K · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a collection of some of Johannes Urzidil's short stories. I found only two to be compelling and which contained strong characters and messages.

[Zuzana🔅 · Rating 5 out of 5]

přečteno ve verzi od ND- Kvartýr (David Jařab)

[VG · Rating 3 out of 5]

I very much enjoyed the first, and title, story in this collection, but found the others rather more lacklustre.

[Alan · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was pleased to have won this book in a recent Goodreads First Reads giveaway.

I don't usually read books that have been translated in to English, nor do I really enjoy books that were written some time ago. The title actually drew my attention, plus the size. Small enough to fit in to a handbag! The stories were enjoyable, well written and is a book that I will keep and read again one day. Recommended.

[Theediscerning · Rating 4 out of 5]

While a few of these stories did show signs of liberally edited modernism, where the author is allowed to just go off on one, generally the writing here is very good. The title story is a brilliant evocation of a moral issue forced by consorting with the enemy, in this case invading Nazi troops. Generally the works hark back to rural times, though, or Bohemia almost as seen in Kafka's tales. I don't know that Urzidil will ever be such a household name, but the time is right on this evidence to get a lot more translated into English, for the pleasures he gave his audience certainly found an appreciative reader here. We're well served by a fine introduction and this sampler, but to only have these five instances of his output in English is actually annoying.

[The Idle Woman · Rating 4 out of 5]

Johannes Urzidil was one of the most celebrated Czech writers of the 20th century. Although he spent his last twenty years as an emigre in the United States, he never made the switch to writing in English. His works continued to be published in Europe in German (one of his two mother tongues) and his works were infused with the sensibility of his homeland. Despite his importance in European literature, his works have only rarely been translated into English. Puskin Press have rectified this omission with a collection of Urzidil’s short stories, none of which have formerly been published in English, and translated now by David Burnett. Lively, moving and gently absurd, these stories focus on outsiders, people whose encounters with ordinary life and emotions leave them thwarted and unmasked as precisely the strange creatures that they are.

Bravo to Pushkin Press for rescuing yet another sparkling Central European writer from Anglophone obscurity, and for introducing us to his succinct, sensitive stories. I hope there’ll be much more Urzidil to come.

For the full review, please see my blog:
https://theidlewoman.net/2017/02/25/t...

[Annie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Pushkin Press continues to do sterling work by retranslating and republishing European fiction with Johannes Urzidil’s The Last Bell (translated by David Burnett). The Last Bell includes five stories by a mid-century Czech author who got lost in the shuffle of history. In these stories, Urzidil writes about life in Prague in the late 1930s (before he himself fled Europe) and in the old Austro-Hungarian Empire before World War I...

Read the rest of my review at A Bookish Type. I received a free copy of this book from NetGalley for review consideration.

[Vanessa · Rating 3 out of 5]

A lovingly (it appears) translated work from a celebrated Czech author. The stories are a little bleak, a little melancholy and rueful, and a little "here is what we left behind" but they read marvelously and smoothly. It is always a pleasure to be introduced to a masterful writer working in a medium of which he or she has full control as Mr.Urzidil is. Looking forward to more from Pushkin from this writer and translator.

I received an ecopy from the publishers and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

[Meghan · Rating 3 out of 5]

Once upon a time I read a book about the Czech Republic where someone (the author? the editor?) translated some of the Czech words but none of the German ones, which annoyed me because I took Russian in university, not German, and could often suss out the Slavic-based Czech on my own, whereas the German remained incomprehensible to me. Similarly (sort-of, maybe -- okay it's a bit of stretch), I keep putting the 'z' in Urzidil in odd places where I think it should be because I guess even the more Slavic parts of Czech culture ended up being just as incomprehensible to me as the German words in another book that is in no way related to this one, The Last Bell, that I'm supposed to be reviewing.

So the whole thing feels like a dream. I read the stories in bed, before sleeping, so maybe that's why. Maybe it's because there's a story about a talking painting and another about a girl who can touch nature. There's also a story about villagers on either side of a pond fighting about cheesecakes and venison. There are bank clerks and forest wardens and countries (Czechoslovakia) that no longer exist and none of it seems real because it isn't real anymore, after Nazis and Soviets and globalization destroyed it all. What was that Zweig book I read awhile ago: Messages from a Lost World? They gave the title to the wrong book, s'all I'm saying.

Maybe I should go to Prague, other parts of Bohemia. Maybe then this will all seem real. Well, not the talking stolen portrait part I hope.

The Last Bell by Johannes Urzidil went on sale April 25, 2017.

I received a copy free from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.