Play Book Tag discussion

If I were to describe this novel in one word, it would be LONG. If I were to add a second word, it would be PHILOSOPHICAL. This is a very, very long philosophical novel set primarily in 1913, and the various characters cover many different slants and various philosophical debates present in Austria at that time. The writing is extremely good, which is why this isn’t one star even though I didn’t like it. There are a variety of characters and points of view, but the main one is Urlich his is not lovable or even likable. I’d say he had some form of Asperger’s, alhough Musil describes him as having a “very masculine mind.”

There are some brilliant and even witty moments in this book, naturally, but the plot, if you can say there is one, is very loose and it feels like we aren’t really getting anywhere. That said, if you love long, literary, philosophical Austrian novels, then I recommend this one to you.

2 stars.

Wow, you finished it. It looks exhausting. I’m very impressed you did it - just between the light reading (of dickens or two :)

The Hebrew version has a beautiful cover by (I think) Egon Schiele - so it always tempted me

Idit wrote: "Wow, you finished it. It looks exhausting. I’m very impressed you did it - just between the light reading (of dickens or two :)

The Hebrew version has a beautiful cover by (I think) Egon Schiele -..."

You might like it, just check out how good the translation is, because apparently the are not all equally good. The one I read is excellent. Musils' wife was half Jewish, but I forgot to mention that he has some racist descriptions of an African servant. It has been so long since I read that part that I'd completely forgotten, although he's made him very intelligent.