What do you think?
Rate this book
La tela
Amnon Zichroni ha il dono di rivivere i ricordi degli altri.
Nato a Gerusalemme e cresciuto nella rigida osservanza della religione ebraica, studia negli Stati Uniti e si stabilisce a Zurigo dove esercita come analista. Lì incontra il liutaio Minsky e lo incoraggia a scrivere un memoriale sulla propria infanzia in un campo di sterminio nazista. Il libro di Minsky, intitolato Giorni di cenere, ha subito un grandissimo successo ma viene attaccato dal giornalista Jan Wechsler perché lo giudica frutto della fantasia.
Dieci anni più tardi, lo stesso Wechsler si vede recapitare all'indirizzo di casa una valigia. Dicono che sia il bagaglio smarrito nel suo ultimo viaggio in Israele. Ma lui non ricorda nulla di quella valigia e nemmeno di quel viaggio.
Forse si tratta solo di un errore, o forse qualcuno si sta prendendo gioco di lui. Decide quindi di recarsi a Gerusalemme per indagare sul mistero. Là scopre quello che non avrebbe mai immaginato, che in Israele ci era stato e che da allora Amnon Zichroni è scomparso...
Un romanzo affascinante, ricco di suspense e incalzante ma anche una intelligente riflessione sull'inaffidabilità dei nostri ricordi, sulla lotta per l'identità e le sue insidie.
Benjamin Stein ci regala una storia costruita in modo magistrale, "un piccolo miracolo".
Una sala degli specchi con due ingressi. Dietro ogni copertina inizia una storia che esattamente al centro si incontra con l'altra.
Un romanzo che non si dimentica e in cui tutto dipende da dove lo si comincia a leggere...
Due vie principali e sentieri secondari che si intersecano guidano attraverso il romanzo.
A ogni svolta si trova un possibile punto di partenza degli eventi. Da dove inizierete a leggere dipende da voi o dal caso. Potete seguire il racconto fino a metà del libro e poi girare e ricominciare dall'altra parte. Per seguire uno dei sentieri secondari vi basta invece girare il libro alla fine di ogni capitolo e riprendete la matassa da dove avevate interrotto. Potete anche cercarvi un vostro cammino personale
Nato a Gerusalemme e cresciuto nella rigida osservanza della religione ebraica, studia negli Stati Uniti e si stabilisce a Zurigo dove esercita come analista. Lì incontra il liutaio Minsky e lo incoraggia a scrivere un memoriale sulla propria infanzia in un campo di sterminio nazista. Il libro di Minsky, intitolato Giorni di cenere, ha subito un grandissimo successo ma viene attaccato dal giornalista Jan Wechsler perché lo giudica frutto della fantasia.
Dieci anni più tardi, lo stesso Wechsler si vede recapitare all'indirizzo di casa una valigia. Dicono che sia il bagaglio smarrito nel suo ultimo viaggio in Israele. Ma lui non ricorda nulla di quella valigia e nemmeno di quel viaggio.
Forse si tratta solo di un errore, o forse qualcuno si sta prendendo gioco di lui. Decide quindi di recarsi a Gerusalemme per indagare sul mistero. Là scopre quello che non avrebbe mai immaginato, che in Israele ci era stato e che da allora Amnon Zichroni è scomparso...
Un romanzo affascinante, ricco di suspense e incalzante ma anche una intelligente riflessione sull'inaffidabilità dei nostri ricordi, sulla lotta per l'identità e le sue insidie.
Benjamin Stein ci regala una storia costruita in modo magistrale, "un piccolo miracolo".
Una sala degli specchi con due ingressi. Dietro ogni copertina inizia una storia che esattamente al centro si incontra con l'altra.
Un romanzo che non si dimentica e in cui tutto dipende da dove lo si comincia a leggere...
Due vie principali e sentieri secondari che si intersecano guidano attraverso il romanzo.
A ogni svolta si trova un possibile punto di partenza degli eventi. Da dove inizierete a leggere dipende da voi o dal caso. Potete seguire il racconto fino a metà del libro e poi girare e ricominciare dall'altra parte. Per seguire uno dei sentieri secondari vi basta invece girare il libro alla fine di ogni capitolo e riprendete la matassa da dove avevate interrotto. Potete anche cercarvi un vostro cammino personale
384 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2010
15 people are currently reading
563 people want to read
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 42 reviews
August 28, 2018
Etkileyici bir okuma idi. İki tarafından da başlamanın mümkün olduğu romanlardan biri daha Beyaz Tuval.
Romanı etkileyici ve gizemli kılan yanlardan biri bu ama yeniden okuyacak olsam bir bölüm o taraftan, bir bölüm diğer taraftan şeklinde okumayı tercih ederdim.
Ben bavullu taraftan başlayanlardan oldum tamamen tesadüfi sebeplerle ama beni bu romana daha derinden bağlayan bölümün, eldivenli taraf, Amnon Zichroni’nin hikayesi olduğunu söyleyebilirim. Amnon’un, İsrail’in ağır ortodoks semtlerinden birinde başlayıp Zürih ve Amerika’da devam eden hikayesi, özellikle amcası Nathan ile olan ilişkisi, edebiyat ve hayat üzerine paylaşımları, amcasının, dini kitaplar haricinde edebiyata müthiş ilgisi olan Zichroni’ye verdiği ilk kitabın Usta ve Margarita oluşu, psikanaliz mevzuları vs gerçekten ilgiyle ve merakla okudum. Özellikle Çin tıbbı ve akapunktur konularıyla ilgili bölümler gerçekten hepimizin durup düşünmemiz, sorgulamamız gereken tespitlerle dolu idi.
Farklı, gizemli ve edebi olarak da sağlam birşeyler okumak isteyenlere tavsiye ederim.
Romanı etkileyici ve gizemli kılan yanlardan biri bu ama yeniden okuyacak olsam bir bölüm o taraftan, bir bölüm diğer taraftan şeklinde okumayı tercih ederdim.
Ben bavullu taraftan başlayanlardan oldum tamamen tesadüfi sebeplerle ama beni bu romana daha derinden bağlayan bölümün, eldivenli taraf, Amnon Zichroni’nin hikayesi olduğunu söyleyebilirim. Amnon’un, İsrail’in ağır ortodoks semtlerinden birinde başlayıp Zürih ve Amerika’da devam eden hikayesi, özellikle amcası Nathan ile olan ilişkisi, edebiyat ve hayat üzerine paylaşımları, amcasının, dini kitaplar haricinde edebiyata müthiş ilgisi olan Zichroni’ye verdiği ilk kitabın Usta ve Margarita oluşu, psikanaliz mevzuları vs gerçekten ilgiyle ve merakla okudum. Özellikle Çin tıbbı ve akapunktur konularıyla ilgili bölümler gerçekten hepimizin durup düşünmemiz, sorgulamamız gereken tespitlerle dolu idi.
Farklı, gizemli ve edebi olarak da sağlam birşeyler okumak isteyenlere tavsiye ederim.
March 11, 2015
Sedate prose lurks inside this inventive novel that can be read in a thrice manner—alternating between the two narratives, or reading each of the narratives in a chosen order (I read Amnon first, Jan second). I wonder whether the overall experience might have been enhanced had I opted to alternate. Each tale, despite the elegant prose, the excellent translation, unwinds at a leisurely canter (the Amnon tale toploads with back story, limping towards the reveal after a lot of prosaic incident), while the Jan tale despite its Queneau referencing and literary preoccupations becomes smothered in tiresome amnesiac-or-doppelgänger shenanigans. A decent attempt at something innovative in the physical act of reading. Respect to Open Letter Books for being them.
July 20, 2015
DISCLAIMER: I am the publisher of the book and thus spent approximately two years reading and editing and working on it. So take my review with a grain of salt, or the understanding that I am deeply invested in this text and know it quite well. Also, I would really appreciate it if you would purchase this book, since it would benefit Open Letter directly.
To cut to the chase: this book is god damn amazing. When I first heard about this--thanks to Ed Park and a short BBC video--I was convinced that Open Letter had to publish it. I mean, it's a book consisting of two narratives, each starting from a different end of the book, and ending in the middle where the two characters finally meet. (As a B.S. Johnson enthusiast, any and all of these sorts of games appeal to me.)
Now, having actually read the complete translation (Brian Zumhagen did a MASTERFUL job), I can say that not only is this format an interesting and compelling device, but one that's essential and transforms the book from being "really quite excellent" to "god damn amazing."
Anyway, I don't want to rehash the plot/jacket copy, but there are basically two main characters, one whose story starts out very realistic and gets a bit more loopy as it goes on, and one whose story starts off like a stoned Paul Auster and then becomes more realistic as it goes on. Both narratives are extremely compelling for very different reasons. And when taken as a whole, when you can see all the connections, it's, well, god damn amazing.
And to go back to that format thing for a second: With questions about memory, identity, and belief at the core of this novel, what you come to think about the characters depends heavily on what order you read this in. Which is another reason this is god damn amazing--it's not just a novel, but an object and an experience.
To cut to the chase: this book is god damn amazing. When I first heard about this--thanks to Ed Park and a short BBC video--I was convinced that Open Letter had to publish it. I mean, it's a book consisting of two narratives, each starting from a different end of the book, and ending in the middle where the two characters finally meet. (As a B.S. Johnson enthusiast, any and all of these sorts of games appeal to me.)
Now, having actually read the complete translation (Brian Zumhagen did a MASTERFUL job), I can say that not only is this format an interesting and compelling device, but one that's essential and transforms the book from being "really quite excellent" to "god damn amazing."
Anyway, I don't want to rehash the plot/jacket copy, but there are basically two main characters, one whose story starts out very realistic and gets a bit more loopy as it goes on, and one whose story starts off like a stoned Paul Auster and then becomes more realistic as it goes on. Both narratives are extremely compelling for very different reasons. And when taken as a whole, when you can see all the connections, it's, well, god damn amazing.
And to go back to that format thing for a second: With questions about memory, identity, and belief at the core of this novel, what you come to think about the characters depends heavily on what order you read this in. Which is another reason this is god damn amazing--it's not just a novel, but an object and an experience.
August 22, 2013
Pick up this book, and you'll immediately notice that it has a front cover on both sides, each oriented so that you can start the book from either end. Investigate a little further, and you find that this book offers two strands in the same tale, and that you can read them in any way you like: one after the other, or in turns.
I settled on the latter approach: I picked up the "Wechsler" side of the book, read chapter 1, then flipped over to the "Zichroni" side and read its first chapter, then went back--and so on. Each strand immediately caught my attention, as both begin with scenes in which the narrators talk about early encounters with literature and a long-term adoration for books. I can certainly relate. The prose is good, and the narrators counter factual tellings with interesting introspections. One of the strands also introduces a mystery that grows with the telling until the consequences of the solution overshadow the greater story.
Around the middle of each strand, I questioned the necessity of the book's format: couldn't Stein and the publisher have put out a traditional format, with each strand printed in its own section? The reader would still have the option to approach the overall story as she wished. Why put half of the book on one side, and half on the other?
I found the definitive answer to that question when I reached the end of the each strand--or, as it were, the middle of the book. I cannot impart that answer here, as I hope that many more people read this book and discover it for themselves; I will say that, once it hit me, the answer gave me a thrilling sense of expansion. Stein put his story together in this way because this structure fits his story and vice-versa; the form has its function, and the story suggests just this form. This is not a gimmick, not an art project, and not a what-the-hell-let's-be-hip move to try and move more books: this is a legitimate tinkering with the traditional format of the novel that results in fresh nuances and a different kind of telling.
One day after reading this, I am still thinking about the story, what happened, and how I felt when I closed each strand. I have that feeling I get, once in awhile, when a writer claims new territory in the literary landscape; it feels like Stein pointed the way to a place I've never visited, saying, "Here, look at this: you can do this with stories, too." I feel like a fortunate reader for having witnessed such an accomplishment.
***
Many Ways of Reading
As stated above, I read this book in turns, switching from one strand to another on a chapter-by-chapter basis. This decision had a tremendous impact on how I experienced the story; had I read a single strand in its entirety and then switched, my impressions of the book would be different--possibly very much so.
Personally, I am glad that I chose my approach, as Stein sprinkles some alluring commonalities in both strands, and it was fun to connect them as I alternated between each story. I also suspect that I would have missed some of these connections had I read one strand whole before picking up the other.
That said, should you choose to read this book, pick whichever way feels right to you. There is no wrong way to read this wonderful novel.
I settled on the latter approach: I picked up the "Wechsler" side of the book, read chapter 1, then flipped over to the "Zichroni" side and read its first chapter, then went back--and so on. Each strand immediately caught my attention, as both begin with scenes in which the narrators talk about early encounters with literature and a long-term adoration for books. I can certainly relate. The prose is good, and the narrators counter factual tellings with interesting introspections. One of the strands also introduces a mystery that grows with the telling until the consequences of the solution overshadow the greater story.
Around the middle of each strand, I questioned the necessity of the book's format: couldn't Stein and the publisher have put out a traditional format, with each strand printed in its own section? The reader would still have the option to approach the overall story as she wished. Why put half of the book on one side, and half on the other?
I found the definitive answer to that question when I reached the end of the each strand--or, as it were, the middle of the book. I cannot impart that answer here, as I hope that many more people read this book and discover it for themselves; I will say that, once it hit me, the answer gave me a thrilling sense of expansion. Stein put his story together in this way because this structure fits his story and vice-versa; the form has its function, and the story suggests just this form. This is not a gimmick, not an art project, and not a what-the-hell-let's-be-hip move to try and move more books: this is a legitimate tinkering with the traditional format of the novel that results in fresh nuances and a different kind of telling.
One day after reading this, I am still thinking about the story, what happened, and how I felt when I closed each strand. I have that feeling I get, once in awhile, when a writer claims new territory in the literary landscape; it feels like Stein pointed the way to a place I've never visited, saying, "Here, look at this: you can do this with stories, too." I feel like a fortunate reader for having witnessed such an accomplishment.
***
Many Ways of Reading
As stated above, I read this book in turns, switching from one strand to another on a chapter-by-chapter basis. This decision had a tremendous impact on how I experienced the story; had I read a single strand in its entirety and then switched, my impressions of the book would be different--possibly very much so.
Personally, I am glad that I chose my approach, as Stein sprinkles some alluring commonalities in both strands, and it was fun to connect them as I alternated between each story. I also suspect that I would have missed some of these connections had I read one strand whole before picking up the other.
That said, should you choose to read this book, pick whichever way feels right to you. There is no wrong way to read this wonderful novel.
June 12, 2018
The more I think about this book, the more strongly I feel that its structure – two novellas that each start from one end of the book, upside down to one another – is more clever than valuable. I chose to read two chapters from one, then two chapters from the other, and can’t imagine reading through one novella and then the other. The result is no different than a novel that alternates chapters by two different voices, an approach that is, I think, overused. And although the novel as a whole takes on memory in fresh ways, I’m not sure these ways are any more valuable (or less clever) than the structure.
The first half of this fascinatingly Jewish novel is pedestrian, especially for Open Letter, but then the sparks and surprises appear, and it’s a good ride through the second half. The first half, as it turns out, was necessarily straightforward, and it’s a relief to read a novel with a better rather than disappointing second half.
The first half of this fascinatingly Jewish novel is pedestrian, especially for Open Letter, but then the sparks and surprises appear, and it’s a good ride through the second half. The first half, as it turns out, was necessarily straightforward, and it’s a relief to read a novel with a better rather than disappointing second half.
April 12, 2025
Jan része nagyon jól le van írva,viszont Amnoné kicsit sietős és kapkodós lett a végére. 10 oldalon fejti ki a regény legfontosabb részét...
Maga a történet izgalmas de több oldalt kellett volna Amnonnak szánni vagy talán kicsit kevesebbet a háttérsztorijának
Maga a történet izgalmas de több oldalt kellett volna Amnonnak szánni vagy talán kicsit kevesebbet a háttérsztorijának
May 8, 2012
Benjamin Stein explores the questions to what extent does our identity depend on our memory and how fragile is it. The story is told from two perspectives, from the two sides of the book. One side tells the story of psychologist Amnon Zichroni who has a mysterious power of living through the memories of his patients and who helps an older man (Minsky) to recover his childhood memories from the concentration camp. The other part is about the writer Jan Wechsler who uncovers that the Minsky's memories (published as a bestseller book) are actually a fraud just to find himself (Wechsler) with sever doubts in his own memory.
As such this is a quite original idea and the book is highly recommended. The prose is largely functional but some really nice passages can be found here and there and I really liked how Stein pays homage to his favorite writers by quoting a verses fo poems, giving a full retelling of the first chapter of Bulgakov's Master and Margarita and telling stories from the jewish tradition (the whole novel is heavily steeped in the jewish tradition, which I found really interesting. A handy dictionary is included).
I do have some tiny gripes though mostly on the structural level. I think Amnon's ability is underutilized - he talks about training it, but we are never shown this and we get only a couple of glimpses of its use. Other times Stein decides to show instead of telling (well showing and repeatedly telling) when in order to illustrate Amnon's skepticism of western medicine there is a completely pointless 6 pages long story about his professor having health problems and going to a acupuncture. There are a few similar instances but this was the most grating.
And finally the ending - Firstly, the pivotal point of the novel, the main intersection of the two stories is purely a coincidence (that Jan from all the people ends up in Amnon's house). That is hardly elegant and I wish some more subtle orchestration could have set it up.
Secondly - I certainly don't require a book to explain everything (or indeed anything). We could have been left guessing - if one can not rely on his memory what else can you rely on, how to get any certainty without a single fixed point? Unfortunately what the book does is simply letting all the questions hang without even acknowledging them. And when I read the end (which turned out to be also the chronological end - I used a coin flip to decide to read first Amnon's and then Jan's story) I was stunned - now why was *that* necessary?
Still, this is quite a unique book and I can strongly recommend it!
As such this is a quite original idea and the book is highly recommended. The prose is largely functional but some really nice passages can be found here and there and I really liked how Stein pays homage to his favorite writers by quoting a verses fo poems, giving a full retelling of the first chapter of Bulgakov's Master and Margarita and telling stories from the jewish tradition (the whole novel is heavily steeped in the jewish tradition, which I found really interesting. A handy dictionary is included).
I do have some tiny gripes though mostly on the structural level. I think Amnon's ability is underutilized - he talks about training it, but we are never shown this and we get only a couple of glimpses of its use. Other times Stein decides to show instead of telling (well showing and repeatedly telling) when in order to illustrate Amnon's skepticism of western medicine there is a completely pointless 6 pages long story about his professor having health problems and going to a acupuncture. There are a few similar instances but this was the most grating.
And finally the ending - Firstly, the pivotal point of the novel, the main intersection of the two stories is purely a coincidence (that Jan from all the people ends up in Amnon's house). That is hardly elegant and I wish some more subtle orchestration could have set it up.
Secondly - I certainly don't require a book to explain everything (or indeed anything). We could have been left guessing - if one can not rely on his memory what else can you rely on, how to get any certainty without a single fixed point? Unfortunately what the book does is simply letting all the questions hang without even acknowledging them. And when I read the end (which turned out to be also the chronological end - I used a coin flip to decide to read first Amnon's and then Jan's story) I was stunned - now why was *that* necessary?
Still, this is quite a unique book and I can strongly recommend it!
July 11, 2016
Read my review on New York Journal of Books first. Additional remarks that appeared in a different and now defunct publication begin with the next paragraph.
Yesterday The Canvas , a psychological mystery by contemporary Jewish-German author Benjamin Stein (no relation to the American comedic actor, game show host, and conservative pundit) was published by Open Letter, a literary press of the University of Rochester that specializes in literature in translation. Open Letter should be commended for publishing foreign literature in translation, but who was the genius who scheduled the publication date of a Jewish-themed book on Yom Kippur?
The Canvas has a unique structure: half way through the book the first of its two narratives ends, and to continue reading readers must turn the book upside down and start again at the other end. The book has two front covers, and readers can start with either one.
Each of the two narratives is focused on a different protagonist, and the paths of the two cross towards the end of each section. Amnon Zichroni is an Orthodox from birth psychiatrist whose coming of age story story starts in early adolescence and is vaguely reminiscent of Chaim Potok's The Chosen. Like The Chosen, part of Amnon's story takes place in New York's Yeshiva University. Jan Wechsler is a book publisher who became Orthodox as an adult and fears he is experiencing amnesia.
In my New York Journal of books review I guardedly recommend The Canvas to Jewishly knowledgable fans of the psychological mystery genre. My recommendation is guarded because I found the endings of the two narratives disappointing, and because the book requires suspensions of disbelief without which readers are likely to become preoccupied with the plausibility of particular details that don't add up--something likely to frustrate mystery readers.
There is a video interview of The Canvas's author Benjamin Stein on the publisher's Three Percent blog.
Yesterday The Canvas , a psychological mystery by contemporary Jewish-German author Benjamin Stein (no relation to the American comedic actor, game show host, and conservative pundit) was published by Open Letter, a literary press of the University of Rochester that specializes in literature in translation. Open Letter should be commended for publishing foreign literature in translation, but who was the genius who scheduled the publication date of a Jewish-themed book on Yom Kippur?
The Canvas has a unique structure: half way through the book the first of its two narratives ends, and to continue reading readers must turn the book upside down and start again at the other end. The book has two front covers, and readers can start with either one.
Each of the two narratives is focused on a different protagonist, and the paths of the two cross towards the end of each section. Amnon Zichroni is an Orthodox from birth psychiatrist whose coming of age story story starts in early adolescence and is vaguely reminiscent of Chaim Potok's The Chosen. Like The Chosen, part of Amnon's story takes place in New York's Yeshiva University. Jan Wechsler is a book publisher who became Orthodox as an adult and fears he is experiencing amnesia.
In my New York Journal of books review I guardedly recommend The Canvas to Jewishly knowledgable fans of the psychological mystery genre. My recommendation is guarded because I found the endings of the two narratives disappointing, and because the book requires suspensions of disbelief without which readers are likely to become preoccupied with the plausibility of particular details that don't add up--something likely to frustrate mystery readers.
There is a video interview of The Canvas's author Benjamin Stein on the publisher's Three Percent blog.
July 27, 2013
I’m going to fail miserably at describing this book. Not just its contents, but the physicality of the object, which is so important in this particular instance because it represents a uniqueness that could never be properly replicated digitally in this current age of massive e-reading adoption. This is not a book to be read on your Kindle or your iPad or your nook. This is an object that you have to interact with beyond the expected page turning that normally goes along with cracking open a book and it serves as a reminder that no matter how handy our electronic devices may be; in some instances they simply can’t replace the experience of reading a physical book.
The first striking thing of note about The Canvas is that it has no back cover. Instead it has two front covers which are almost the same image but with reverse coloring. Whichever side you’re looking at, the text on the opposite side is upside down, meaning that to read anything from the other side you literally have to flip the book over.
READ MORE:
http://www.typographicalera.com/the-c...
The first striking thing of note about The Canvas is that it has no back cover. Instead it has two front covers which are almost the same image but with reverse coloring. Whichever side you’re looking at, the text on the opposite side is upside down, meaning that to read anything from the other side you literally have to flip the book over.
READ MORE:
http://www.typographicalera.com/the-c...
August 27, 2018
Kitap iki bölüme ayrılmış,isterseniz kitabın yarısını bitirip diğer yarısından devam ediyorsunuz ya da bir bölüm Ammon Zichroni bir bölüm Jan Wechsler kısımından okuyabiliyorsunuz.İki ayrı bölümden bir bütün oluşturulmuş.Gayet hoş ve etikleyici bir kitaptı.Yahudilikle ilgili bir çok şey öğrenmiş oldum.Dinsel terimler epey yer almakta,okurken bu durum biraz beni sıkmış olsada kesinlikle okunmaya değer.Kitapta sadece dini değil toplumsal meseleler de tarafsızca değinilmiş.Özellikle serçelerle ilgi olan kısım beni çok fazla etkiledi.Araştırdığımda ve mevzunun gerçek olduğunu öğrendim ve çok fazla şaşırdım.Bir sonraki bölümü merakla okuyarak,ne olacak acaba diye tahminler yürüterek okudum.İlginç bir kitaptı tavsiye ederim.
June 16, 2014
Also ich hab es im weniger als ein Tag gelesen und es hat mir sehr gut gefallen, aber wahrscheinlich bin ich die einzige Person die sich der Frage stellt wer hat der Koffer geschickt, warum ist der Jan durchgedreht und so weiter und sofort. Mir kommt es vor wie ein halb geschriebenes Buch. Sonnst hab ich es ganz gut gefunden, es kann ja sein, dass es an mir liegt und ich nicht ganz dicht bin, wer weißt...Die Erklärung die ich abgeliefert hab ist nicht wirklich nötig gewesen, aber ich schrieb es in der Hoffnung jemanden würde mir ein Antwort geben...
Ein halb gelesenes Buch ist wie unvollendete Affäre
Ein halb gelesenes Buch ist wie unvollendete Affäre
July 10, 2015
I feel very ...confused...after reading this. it was a great read throughout. I chose to read it alternating narratives, which in hindsight seems to be the best way to read it...though maybe starting with ammon z. would be okay as well. I do not think I would have read the second half if I started with jan. maybe out of obligation I may have...who knows.
quasi SPOILER:
I wish I had figured out why/how Jan became the way he is. that's what makes me be unsatisfied with the ending and left me confused on how I feel with the overall story
quasi SPOILER:
I wish I had figured out why/how Jan became the way he is. that's what makes me be unsatisfied with the ending and left me confused on how I feel with the overall story
Read
October 19, 2020Bu kitabı "Kendi yolunuzu aramakta serbestsiniz" cümlesinden yola çıkarak garip bir seçimle, uzun sürede okudum. Seçtiğim bir taraftan başlayıp daha sonra ikinci bölümü kitabı ters çevirip diğer hikâyeden okudum. Yani her iki tarafta da birer bölümü atlayarak okumuş oldum. Bir tarafta 1-3-5-7-9-11. bölümleri, diğer tarafta 2-4-6-8-10. bölümleri okudum. Bir defa kitabın ortasına gelip romanı bitirdikten sonra, diğer taraftan okumaya başlamadan önce bir hafta kadar ara verdim. İkinci defa okumaya başladığımda kitabın ne kadar zihne kazınan bir dili, karakterleri ve olay örgüsü olduğunu fark ettim.
Amnon'un hikâyesi çoğu yorumda söz edildiği gibi daha ilgi çekici olsa de Jan Wechsler'in benim için unutması zor bir karakter olduğunu söyleyebilirim. Ülkeler ve şehirler arasındaki geçişleriyle, aile soyağacına ihtiyaç duymama sebep olan dallanıp budaklanmış bir geçmişe bakışla, 20. yüzyıl tarihine ve çok kültürlülüğe yapılan atıflarıyla kitabın beni etkilediği pek çok nokta olduğunu söyleyebilirim. Gazetecilik, yayıncılık, keman tamirciliği/virtüözlüğü, yazarlık, psikanalist(lik), kuyumculuk ve hahamlık gibi çeşitli mesleklere yapılan dokunuşlar da keyifli ve bilgilendiriciydi. Yahudiliğe dair bir sürü şey öğrenmiş olmaktan memnun olsam da bazen fazla gelmedi desem yalan söylemiş olurum.
Ne 3 yıldız ne 4. 3,5/5.
Amnon'un hikâyesi çoğu yorumda söz edildiği gibi daha ilgi çekici olsa de Jan Wechsler'in benim için unutması zor bir karakter olduğunu söyleyebilirim. Ülkeler ve şehirler arasındaki geçişleriyle, aile soyağacına ihtiyaç duymama sebep olan dallanıp budaklanmış bir geçmişe bakışla, 20. yüzyıl tarihine ve çok kültürlülüğe yapılan atıflarıyla kitabın beni etkilediği pek çok nokta olduğunu söyleyebilirim. Gazetecilik, yayıncılık, keman tamirciliği/virtüözlüğü, yazarlık, psikanalist(lik), kuyumculuk ve hahamlık gibi çeşitli mesleklere yapılan dokunuşlar da keyifli ve bilgilendiriciydi. Yahudiliğe dair bir sürü şey öğrenmiş olmaktan memnun olsam da bazen fazla gelmedi desem yalan söylemiş olurum.
Ne 3 yıldız ne 4. 3,5/5.
June 19, 2017
Kitap gerçekten çok iyi bir şekilde kurgulanmış. Tasarısı gerçekten iyi ve ilginç. Fakat yine de ben bu kitabı o kadar da sevemedim. Olayları birbiri ile bağlayamadım, sürekli farklı zamanlara gidip gelmesi çok yordu bu yüzden sayfaları bağdaştırmakta zorlandım. Bu yetmiyormuş gibi bir de kitabın dili de çok zordu. 4 günde bitirdim. Kitabın Amnon kısmı çok iyi. Hatta ben bu kısmı ilk okuduğum için çok beğenmiştim ama Jan kısmı beni mahvetti. 3 yıldız vermemin sebebi Jan kısmı. Jan kısmı aslında çok iyi başladı hatta zor diline rağmen akıcıydı ama orta kısımlara doğru beni bitirdi. Son 30 sayfaya kadar okumak için okudum son sayfalar her şey anlaşılıyor. Kitabın beni yormasına rağmen gerçekten şaşırmıştım ama dediğim gibi o kadar yordu ki o yüksek dereceli şaşkınlık bile toparlayamadı. Yine de çok iyi dizayn edilmiş bir kitap.
Peki okunmaya değer mi?
Gerçekten bu soruya ne cevap vermeliyim bilmiyorum. Emin değilim, belki belki...
Peki okunmaya değer mi?
Gerçekten bu soruya ne cevap vermeliyim bilmiyorum. Emin değilim, belki belki...
January 26, 2019
I read Amnon Z's story first, and thoroughly enjoyed it. Various themes interested me - training as a psychotherapist being one of them. Then I read the other half, and found myself disappointed. But as a group, our reading group found plenty to talk about and there were lots of different opinions from great enthusiasm to readers who were, like me, rather more luke-warm.
May 25, 2018
Kurgusu çok iyi olan açık uçlu bir kitap. Sanki devam edebilirdi gibi geldi bana. Yahudilikle alakalı bilgi bombardımanına hazır olun. Ne kadar az şey bildiğimi ben de öğrenmiş oldum. Bu eser iyi ki türkçeye kazandırılmış. Güzel bir kitap gerçekten.
October 30, 2019
Fünf Sterne schon wegen der Idee!
May 19, 2020
İki hikayenin nasıl birleşeceğinin merakı dışında çok fazla ilgi çekici değildi benim için. Yahudilik ile ilgili çok fazla terim vardı.
October 2, 2025
muy bueno, muy original, rarísimo el final de Jan wescher
March 4, 2013
Benjamin Stein
The Canvas
(Rochester, NY: Open Letter Books, 2012.)
Translated from German by Brian Zumhagen.
By John King
"The Canvas" was reviewed in The Literary Review
"Loss Control" Fall 2012
www.theliteraryreview.com
Because the very act of reading Benjamin Stein’s The Canvas involves metaphysical provocations, it defies any normal attempt at summarization or evaluation. I haven’t had an experience like this since I read the 1994 English translation of George Perec’s novel, A Void, which both in English and French contains no instance of the letter e. The Canvas, translated from the German with charming deftness by Brian Zumhagen, brings to American readers another great work in the European experimental tradition, experiments that tend to be very precise in their execution.
In the case of The Canvas, there are two sides, and whichever the reader chooses to read first will provide an entirely different sense of narrative tension. If this device were not precocious enough, the title page also suggests that the reader might want to read each chapter alternately, like a story that switches between plots. “Of course,” Stein adds, “you’re also free to find your own way.”
I began with the half about Amnon Zichroni, an endearing Jewish boy who learns that he has the psychic ability to relive the memories of anyone he touches. As a boy, a mishap involving a purloined copy of The Picture of Dorian Gray sends him to Switzerland, and eventually, through his best efforts to understand the holy purpose of his secret ability, he becomes a psychologist, to help damaged people find their way back to themselves, and the world:
In analysis, you could put the reins back in their hands—or rather, the pallet and the paintbrush, so they could set a new tone on the canvas of their memories.
You could even become a canvas yourself, a projection screen where the patients could sketch possible alternative portraits and try out new ways of entering into relationships with other people again.
Considering the thematic connections to Wilde’s novel, this gift sometimes seems ominous.
Zichroni’s calling becomes tragic when a journalist named Jan Wechsler ques- tions the truth of an excavated repressed memory of someone whom Amnon had helped.
The other half of The Canvas tells at once a less mystical and more psychologi- cally unsettling story. An airline delivers a suitcase to the publisher Jan Wechsler one Shabbos afternoon. (If the reader has already read the other half, then this por- tion of The Canvas makes the reader try to connect this character to the “journalist” Jan Wechsler who appeared cryptically in the first part, but such connections can only be made provisionally, and become more problematic as the “Jan Wechsler” portion continues.) Although the penmanship on the receipt seems like his, and the address is correct, the suitcase is not, to Jan’s knowledge, his own. Before he allows himself to open the suitcase, Jan Wechsler takes the reader along several anecdotes from his life, including his peculiar relationship to books:
After our move a few years ago, I came to a bitter realization: most of the books that I had imagined I owned had in reality never been my property. I had bor- rowed them, from friends and from libraries. They hadn’t been with me for some time, only in my head, where memory rewrites everything and sometimes distorts it beyond recognition.
He lets a long time pass before examining the luggage, and when he does, his own identity begins to unravel. He finds books under his own name, and becomes convinced that there must be another Jan Wechsler, a writer, with whom the airline has apparently confused him. Over time, though, as his wife and children leave him, his certainty that he isn’t the other Jan Wechsler deteriorates, and, like the alterna- tive drafts that psychoanalysis provides to Zichroni’s patients, Wechsler remembers more than one history for himself.
Wechsler keeps striving to reveal the true mystery of who he is. Is this schizophrenia, dementia, or perhaps a case of metaphysical doppelgängers? Which Wechsler, if any, is the real one? And does he exist perhaps in some ontological overlap with Zichroni himself? The confounding dual detours in Wechsler’s memories resonate deeply, especially as the narrative masterfully reconstructs itself toward the end of the Wechsler half. The Canvas left me with a sense that if religion and literature both aim to understand human character, the struggle might never end:
I have still only seen a fragment from the image of my past. The largest part is still covered with a black cloth. . . . But over there, in the water, is my lost self. It’s waiting for me. I just have to reach for it.
In Benjamin Stein’s hands, this struggle for identity is a terrifying, worthwhile fight. The Canvas is a mind-bending companion in the best possible sense.
The Canvas
(Rochester, NY: Open Letter Books, 2012.)
Translated from German by Brian Zumhagen.
By John King
"The Canvas" was reviewed in The Literary Review
"Loss Control" Fall 2012
www.theliteraryreview.com
Because the very act of reading Benjamin Stein’s The Canvas involves metaphysical provocations, it defies any normal attempt at summarization or evaluation. I haven’t had an experience like this since I read the 1994 English translation of George Perec’s novel, A Void, which both in English and French contains no instance of the letter e. The Canvas, translated from the German with charming deftness by Brian Zumhagen, brings to American readers another great work in the European experimental tradition, experiments that tend to be very precise in their execution.
In the case of The Canvas, there are two sides, and whichever the reader chooses to read first will provide an entirely different sense of narrative tension. If this device were not precocious enough, the title page also suggests that the reader might want to read each chapter alternately, like a story that switches between plots. “Of course,” Stein adds, “you’re also free to find your own way.”
I began with the half about Amnon Zichroni, an endearing Jewish boy who learns that he has the psychic ability to relive the memories of anyone he touches. As a boy, a mishap involving a purloined copy of The Picture of Dorian Gray sends him to Switzerland, and eventually, through his best efforts to understand the holy purpose of his secret ability, he becomes a psychologist, to help damaged people find their way back to themselves, and the world:
In analysis, you could put the reins back in their hands—or rather, the pallet and the paintbrush, so they could set a new tone on the canvas of their memories.
You could even become a canvas yourself, a projection screen where the patients could sketch possible alternative portraits and try out new ways of entering into relationships with other people again.
Considering the thematic connections to Wilde’s novel, this gift sometimes seems ominous.
Zichroni’s calling becomes tragic when a journalist named Jan Wechsler ques- tions the truth of an excavated repressed memory of someone whom Amnon had helped.
The other half of The Canvas tells at once a less mystical and more psychologi- cally unsettling story. An airline delivers a suitcase to the publisher Jan Wechsler one Shabbos afternoon. (If the reader has already read the other half, then this por- tion of The Canvas makes the reader try to connect this character to the “journalist” Jan Wechsler who appeared cryptically in the first part, but such connections can only be made provisionally, and become more problematic as the “Jan Wechsler” portion continues.) Although the penmanship on the receipt seems like his, and the address is correct, the suitcase is not, to Jan’s knowledge, his own. Before he allows himself to open the suitcase, Jan Wechsler takes the reader along several anecdotes from his life, including his peculiar relationship to books:
After our move a few years ago, I came to a bitter realization: most of the books that I had imagined I owned had in reality never been my property. I had bor- rowed them, from friends and from libraries. They hadn’t been with me for some time, only in my head, where memory rewrites everything and sometimes distorts it beyond recognition.
He lets a long time pass before examining the luggage, and when he does, his own identity begins to unravel. He finds books under his own name, and becomes convinced that there must be another Jan Wechsler, a writer, with whom the airline has apparently confused him. Over time, though, as his wife and children leave him, his certainty that he isn’t the other Jan Wechsler deteriorates, and, like the alterna- tive drafts that psychoanalysis provides to Zichroni’s patients, Wechsler remembers more than one history for himself.
Wechsler keeps striving to reveal the true mystery of who he is. Is this schizophrenia, dementia, or perhaps a case of metaphysical doppelgängers? Which Wechsler, if any, is the real one? And does he exist perhaps in some ontological overlap with Zichroni himself? The confounding dual detours in Wechsler’s memories resonate deeply, especially as the narrative masterfully reconstructs itself toward the end of the Wechsler half. The Canvas left me with a sense that if religion and literature both aim to understand human character, the struggle might never end:
I have still only seen a fragment from the image of my past. The largest part is still covered with a black cloth. . . . But over there, in the water, is my lost self. It’s waiting for me. I just have to reach for it.
In Benjamin Stein’s hands, this struggle for identity is a terrifying, worthwhile fight. The Canvas is a mind-bending companion in the best possible sense.
March 16, 2017
Ingenieus tweeluik dat identiteit en herinnering, en hun onderlinge afhankelijkheid, als thema heeft. Vrij goed in het oproepen van vragen, minder consistent in het geven van antwoorden. Beide luiken bevatten verhaallijnen die te veel of juist te weinig werden uitgewerkt. Joodse setting, in Duitsland en Israel.
July 23, 2012
I received this as a Goodreads giveaway. The plot is loosely fictionalized around the real life of Binjamin Wilkomirski--a man who wrote a Holocaust memoir but was later discovered to be a fraud. The main characters of The Canvas are the two important people in Wilkomiriski's life (in this book, his name is Minsky): his therapist, Amnon Zichroni, and the writer, Jan Wechsler, who exposed him as a liar.
The real story alone is enough to get me hooked on this book, but the fictionalized version by Stein does it one better: instead of relying on uncovering the reasons why a person would fake a Holocaust story and what those people around him were feeling, Stein explores the whole notion of memory--how much can we trust it? Is truth only a matter of point of view?
Wechsler's character suffers from having too little memory--in fact, he has holes so large in his memory that it takes a significant willing suspending of disbelief to go along with his story. However, I did not have a problem accepting it: for all the reality in this tale, it was told in a somewhat magical realist sort of way: the messages and the metaphors were more important than it being realistic. Zichroni, on the other hand, suffers from too much memory: he not only knows his own life in vivid detail, but when he touches the skin of others, he can plunge into their life experiences as well. Both characters are likable and well rounded, and their tales were absorbing. Even though they are essentially nemesis, it's hard to root for one or the other, which is probably the point.
Another compelling aspect of this story is the structure. I was simply tickled by the whole notion that you read one character's tale, flip it over, and then read the other character until the two meet in the middle. The stories overlapped in such a way that you could also alternate by going back and forth between the characters every chapter. I let fate choose for me, and for no reason started with Jan's story and went to Amnon's next, but I think any way you read it would be satisfying. While the stories are in opposition, they compliment each other in pleasant ways--Yin and Yang, so to speak.
There were beautiful moments of wisdom in this book, places where I wanted to pause and stop to ponder the gravity of what the narrator's were asking us to consider about our own lives. Also, it is rich historically and culturally, and I learned a lot from this book. Of all the great things that literature can achieve, I think this book accomplishes it.
My only gripe is the ending--without giving anything away, I was not really satisfied. We were set up to believe this was a mystery that would be solved, and those expectations are trumped. It's an uncomfortable feeling, but perhaps that is the point.
All in all, a highly recommended read! A book that is hard to put down!
The real story alone is enough to get me hooked on this book, but the fictionalized version by Stein does it one better: instead of relying on uncovering the reasons why a person would fake a Holocaust story and what those people around him were feeling, Stein explores the whole notion of memory--how much can we trust it? Is truth only a matter of point of view?
Wechsler's character suffers from having too little memory--in fact, he has holes so large in his memory that it takes a significant willing suspending of disbelief to go along with his story. However, I did not have a problem accepting it: for all the reality in this tale, it was told in a somewhat magical realist sort of way: the messages and the metaphors were more important than it being realistic. Zichroni, on the other hand, suffers from too much memory: he not only knows his own life in vivid detail, but when he touches the skin of others, he can plunge into their life experiences as well. Both characters are likable and well rounded, and their tales were absorbing. Even though they are essentially nemesis, it's hard to root for one or the other, which is probably the point.
Another compelling aspect of this story is the structure. I was simply tickled by the whole notion that you read one character's tale, flip it over, and then read the other character until the two meet in the middle. The stories overlapped in such a way that you could also alternate by going back and forth between the characters every chapter. I let fate choose for me, and for no reason started with Jan's story and went to Amnon's next, but I think any way you read it would be satisfying. While the stories are in opposition, they compliment each other in pleasant ways--Yin and Yang, so to speak.
There were beautiful moments of wisdom in this book, places where I wanted to pause and stop to ponder the gravity of what the narrator's were asking us to consider about our own lives. Also, it is rich historically and culturally, and I learned a lot from this book. Of all the great things that literature can achieve, I think this book accomplishes it.
My only gripe is the ending--without giving anything away, I was not really satisfied. We were set up to believe this was a mystery that would be solved, and those expectations are trumped. It's an uncomfortable feeling, but perhaps that is the point.
All in all, a highly recommended read! A book that is hard to put down!
October 11, 2012
Review of The Canvas published in The L Magazine: http://www.thelmagazine.com/newyork/t...
(Full text of the review below.)
***
“No one knows better than I that the boundary between reality and fiction in every story runs meanderingly through the middle of language, concealed and incomprehensible—and movable.”
This observation, made by one of The Canvas’s two increasingly unreliable narrators, is easily applied to the novel itself, a sophisticated Choose Your Own Adventure that’s not only a complex narrative but also a significant exploration of how form and structure irrevocably affect a story’s reception.
Delving into truth, memory, empathy, and self-making, Stein’s novel takes inspiration from the real-life scandal of Binjamin Wilkomirski, a Swiss man who notoriously penned a successful but falsified Holocaust memoir in the late 1990s. The Canvas is comprised of two stories: that of Jan Weschler, a Jewish publisher living in Munich, and of Amnon Zichroni, a dedicated scholar of the Talmud who can physically experience the memories of others. The tales literally begin opposite and upside down from one another—the book has two covers, and Jan and Amnon’s stories meet in the middle; a reader could start at either end of the book or alternate back and forth between the two. These narratives intersect abruptly and surprisingly; whose version of events you believe largely depends on whose you read first.
Stein immerses the reader in the lives and memories of both characters—in Jan Weschler’s East Berlin upbringing and eventual conversion to Orthodox Judaism; in Amnon Zichroni’s brush with secular literature as a child and his resultant move to Switzerland. Rather than providing any real sort of clarity, however, the intimacy provided by the first-person narration actually obscures the stories more; in particular, Weschler’s discovery that his life is not what he remembers is profoundly shocking not only to him but also to the all-too-trusting reader.
(Full text of the review below.)
***
“No one knows better than I that the boundary between reality and fiction in every story runs meanderingly through the middle of language, concealed and incomprehensible—and movable.”
This observation, made by one of The Canvas’s two increasingly unreliable narrators, is easily applied to the novel itself, a sophisticated Choose Your Own Adventure that’s not only a complex narrative but also a significant exploration of how form and structure irrevocably affect a story’s reception.
Delving into truth, memory, empathy, and self-making, Stein’s novel takes inspiration from the real-life scandal of Binjamin Wilkomirski, a Swiss man who notoriously penned a successful but falsified Holocaust memoir in the late 1990s. The Canvas is comprised of two stories: that of Jan Weschler, a Jewish publisher living in Munich, and of Amnon Zichroni, a dedicated scholar of the Talmud who can physically experience the memories of others. The tales literally begin opposite and upside down from one another—the book has two covers, and Jan and Amnon’s stories meet in the middle; a reader could start at either end of the book or alternate back and forth between the two. These narratives intersect abruptly and surprisingly; whose version of events you believe largely depends on whose you read first.
Stein immerses the reader in the lives and memories of both characters—in Jan Weschler’s East Berlin upbringing and eventual conversion to Orthodox Judaism; in Amnon Zichroni’s brush with secular literature as a child and his resultant move to Switzerland. Rather than providing any real sort of clarity, however, the intimacy provided by the first-person narration actually obscures the stories more; in particular, Weschler’s discovery that his life is not what he remembers is profoundly shocking not only to him but also to the all-too-trusting reader.
Read
June 11, 2014http://www.full-stop.net/2012/11/28/r...
Review by Scott Cheshire
Amnon Zichroni, a devout orthodox Jew and one of two dueling narrators in Benjamin Stein’s remarkable novel The Canvas, asks:
Why, for example, does Torah study for children begin with Vayikra, the third book of Moses, and not with the first? Children learn all the details about the offering of the sacrifices in the Temple, a bloody business, and barely comprehensible for five- or six-year olds. It would be more reasonable to start with the story of creation and the lives of our forefathers.
Eli, his study partner, responds that then “they would find out about Cain’s murder, Noah’s alcoholism . . . Lot’s incest with his daughters . . . [a]nd then it would be difficult for them to believe a certain interpretation of reality blindly, and they would ask questions from the very beginning.” Stein’s most basic point here is critical to an understanding of his own book: order of information matters, and the very notion of truth can be shaped by it.
Stein has written a novel that re-shapes itself upon each reading depending solely on the reader’s tack. The Canvas has two narrators, Amnon Zichroni and Jan Wechsler, whose stories corroborate, contradict, and eventually collide in the end. Or should I say middle — the physical book is actually bound with two independent and nearly identical covers, so the reader is free to choose where to begin. Whether you choose to start with Zichroni’s or with Wechsler’s narrative largely determines which narrator gains your trust. (I chose a path at random — Zichroni’s narrative followed by Wechsler’s — the first time, and then read the book again in reverse order.)
Read more here: http://www.full-stop.net/2012/11/28/r...
Review by Scott Cheshire
Amnon Zichroni, a devout orthodox Jew and one of two dueling narrators in Benjamin Stein’s remarkable novel The Canvas, asks:
Why, for example, does Torah study for children begin with Vayikra, the third book of Moses, and not with the first? Children learn all the details about the offering of the sacrifices in the Temple, a bloody business, and barely comprehensible for five- or six-year olds. It would be more reasonable to start with the story of creation and the lives of our forefathers.
Eli, his study partner, responds that then “they would find out about Cain’s murder, Noah’s alcoholism . . . Lot’s incest with his daughters . . . [a]nd then it would be difficult for them to believe a certain interpretation of reality blindly, and they would ask questions from the very beginning.” Stein’s most basic point here is critical to an understanding of his own book: order of information matters, and the very notion of truth can be shaped by it.
Stein has written a novel that re-shapes itself upon each reading depending solely on the reader’s tack. The Canvas has two narrators, Amnon Zichroni and Jan Wechsler, whose stories corroborate, contradict, and eventually collide in the end. Or should I say middle — the physical book is actually bound with two independent and nearly identical covers, so the reader is free to choose where to begin. Whether you choose to start with Zichroni’s or with Wechsler’s narrative largely determines which narrator gains your trust. (I chose a path at random — Zichroni’s narrative followed by Wechsler’s — the first time, and then read the book again in reverse order.)
Read more here: http://www.full-stop.net/2012/11/28/r...
April 1, 2013
This is one of those books that can't be described in much detail without spoiling it for others. I'll leave that to die Blurbmeister. Suffice it to say that the writing is limpid and the pace is just right for the sort of suspense the author weaves.
Yes, it treats a wide range of subjects and psychical realities (by turns psychological, religious, and/or mystical) and impinges on many matters of the horrorshow of 20th century history. That said, it's not exactly sprawling; it takes on the territory in the manner more of a root system than of a wide-cast net.
Yes, the meaning gleaned may be influenced by the order in which the story is read, which is up to the reader. However, I believe most readers will take on the task of finding "the" meaning; I cannot say whether such a quest will meet with "success" in view of the author's careful reticence at key points.
My one suggestion is to decide where to start and how to proceed, and then follow it through — optimally with some hours available for uninterrupted reading in only a few sessions. The glossary is helpful, though tantalizingly incomplete, and always there for the consulting. The reader must also decide how to deal with the temptation to flip back and forth between the stories. In fact, this one may give new meaning to the concept of "interactive fiction."
I expect you will find the book rewarding if you are tantalized by these few thoughts or if you have enjoyed books like Ruiz Zafon's Shadow of the Wind.
Yes, it treats a wide range of subjects and psychical realities (by turns psychological, religious, and/or mystical) and impinges on many matters of the horrorshow of 20th century history. That said, it's not exactly sprawling; it takes on the territory in the manner more of a root system than of a wide-cast net.
Yes, the meaning gleaned may be influenced by the order in which the story is read, which is up to the reader. However, I believe most readers will take on the task of finding "the" meaning; I cannot say whether such a quest will meet with "success" in view of the author's careful reticence at key points.
My one suggestion is to decide where to start and how to proceed, and then follow it through — optimally with some hours available for uninterrupted reading in only a few sessions. The glossary is helpful, though tantalizingly incomplete, and always there for the consulting. The reader must also decide how to deal with the temptation to flip back and forth between the stories. In fact, this one may give new meaning to the concept of "interactive fiction."
I expect you will find the book rewarding if you are tantalized by these few thoughts or if you have enjoyed books like Ruiz Zafon's Shadow of the Wind.
August 5, 2011
Ein Wendebuch. Kann man von einer Seite beginnen oder das Buch drehen und wenden und von der anderen Seite beginnen. In der Mitte treffen beide Handlungsstränge dann aufeinander. Soviel zum leicht Beschreibbaren. Da könnte man noch erwähnen, dass dieses Buch sehr raumschindend gesetzt ist, für Quantitätsluchse ein Genuss, weil man ständig blättern kann.
Inhaltlich widmet sich der eine Erzählstrang einem Autor, der meint, noch nie ein wirkliches Buch geschrieben zu haben. Eines Tages erreicht ihn auf einmal ein Koffer, retourniert von einer Fluggesellschaft: In seiner Handschrift ist das Namensschild ausgefüllt, allein, der Autor meint, ihn noch nie gesehen zu haben. Der Inhalt versetzt ihn in Schrecken und er löst eine wirre Hatz nach und Flucht vor der Vergangenheit aus.
Der zweite Erzählstrang denn handelt von einem Mann, der streng jüdisch aufgewachsen und erzogen worden ist, er entwickelt eine sonderbare Fähigkeit, er kann direkt Erinnerungen anderer an sich nachempfinden. Was tun mit einer solchen Gabe?
Recht unterhaltsame Lektüre, keine wirkliche Herausforderung, aber man möchte durchaus doch wissen, wie es weitergeht. Könnte man vermutlich auch gut verkatert lesen, während einem ein Kater am großen Zeh knabbert.
Inhaltlich widmet sich der eine Erzählstrang einem Autor, der meint, noch nie ein wirkliches Buch geschrieben zu haben. Eines Tages erreicht ihn auf einmal ein Koffer, retourniert von einer Fluggesellschaft: In seiner Handschrift ist das Namensschild ausgefüllt, allein, der Autor meint, ihn noch nie gesehen zu haben. Der Inhalt versetzt ihn in Schrecken und er löst eine wirre Hatz nach und Flucht vor der Vergangenheit aus.
Der zweite Erzählstrang denn handelt von einem Mann, der streng jüdisch aufgewachsen und erzogen worden ist, er entwickelt eine sonderbare Fähigkeit, er kann direkt Erinnerungen anderer an sich nachempfinden. Was tun mit einer solchen Gabe?
Recht unterhaltsame Lektüre, keine wirkliche Herausforderung, aber man möchte durchaus doch wissen, wie es weitergeht. Könnte man vermutlich auch gut verkatert lesen, während einem ein Kater am großen Zeh knabbert.
January 8, 2013
I had the great pleasure of talking with author Benjamin Stein while he was here in the States, and that conversation was published at the Tottenville Review. I also interviewed the translator Brian Zumhagen, and wrote about the book, both found at Full-Stop.
All of which can be found here: http://scottcheshire.tumblr.com/
From my talk with author Benjamin Stein:
INTERVIEWER
I think American readers have a very difficult relationship to this question. We are as a people largely attracted to the memoir and its very simplistic notion of identifiable truth and memory. How do you feel about the memoir as a form?
BENJAMIN STEIN
Memoirs are piles of lies. Well, let me phrase it less drastically: Every written memoir is carefully shaped. It presents the retouched version of events in a way that best illustrates the point the writer is trying to make. No more, no less. Just ask your family members for their accounts of an event they all witnessed some years ago. You get as many story versions as you have narrators. This is absolutely no problem. Just don’t think that anybody would recall something like an objective truth from memory...
http://www.tottenvillereview.com/a-co...
All of which can be found here: http://scottcheshire.tumblr.com/
From my talk with author Benjamin Stein:
INTERVIEWER
I think American readers have a very difficult relationship to this question. We are as a people largely attracted to the memoir and its very simplistic notion of identifiable truth and memory. How do you feel about the memoir as a form?
BENJAMIN STEIN
Memoirs are piles of lies. Well, let me phrase it less drastically: Every written memoir is carefully shaped. It presents the retouched version of events in a way that best illustrates the point the writer is trying to make. No more, no less. Just ask your family members for their accounts of an event they all witnessed some years ago. You get as many story versions as you have narrators. This is absolutely no problem. Just don’t think that anybody would recall something like an objective truth from memory...
http://www.tottenvillereview.com/a-co...
March 9, 2014
Mind-boggling, complex, mystical, creative.....these are just a few of the adjectives that come to mind after reading this novel...or should I say novels? This novel has two first pages, two epigraphs, and two protagonists. The reader can begin at either end of the physical book and read to the center, then flip the book over and read to the center again. I know, sounds gimmicky, but it works on many levels.
The primary themes in this tale are memory and identity. Memories can change, identities can be forgotten. Identities can be chosen, memories can return. Memories can be shared, memories can come in dreams. Identities can be forced upon one, identities can be faked. Two characters, Amnon and Jan, struggle to live their lives and the intersection of their lives in this psychological novel. The backdrop for the book is Orthodox Jewry, with a touch of Kabbalah mysticism.
I am left with the profound desire to discuss this book with someone else who has read it, because I do not think I can fully grasp its meanings without some shared conversation. I think anyone who reads this will have a similar experience.
The primary themes in this tale are memory and identity. Memories can change, identities can be forgotten. Identities can be chosen, memories can return. Memories can be shared, memories can come in dreams. Identities can be forced upon one, identities can be faked. Two characters, Amnon and Jan, struggle to live their lives and the intersection of their lives in this psychological novel. The backdrop for the book is Orthodox Jewry, with a touch of Kabbalah mysticism.
I am left with the profound desire to discuss this book with someone else who has read it, because I do not think I can fully grasp its meanings without some shared conversation. I think anyone who reads this will have a similar experience.
November 23, 2016
"Which of these stories is true?...They're all true! I say, as contradictory as they may appear...it is only in the observers' perception that the story takes place at all." While this notion is immediately afterwards dismissed as "lofty," it does reflect the central themes in the novel: namely, identity as shaped by memory and the fallibility of aforementioned memory. The book's structure is one of its biggest distinguishing factors: two separate but interconnected stories starting from opposite ends of the book and converging in the middle, one of Amnon Zichroni, an Orthodox-from-birth Jewish psychoanalyst, and one of Jan Wechsler, a publisher who establishes his Jewish identity much later in life. The book does use rather specific Yiddish/Hebrew terms throughout, and although there is a glossary included, I found myself having to look up many of them, which got a bit tiresome a few pages into Zichroni's story. Other than that, though, I found the novel thought-provoking and well-thought out. Definitely would like to revisit it in the future, as I feel this is one of those books that reveals a fresh perspective or insight with every reading.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 42 reviews