Jennifer nyc’s Reviews > The Magic Mountain > Status Update

I hated this book so much. Not sure print format worked any better for it, but I'm obviously biased. :P

I am not sure as well, Jennifer, especially the second part when a lot of it is this type of a debate between the two men:-) In general, the first time I've read it I struggled to like it never mind appreciate it:-) But on the second reading in few years it has properly shined on me. Not an easy 'nut to crack' but the worthwhile one. If you have a choice try, Wood's translation. Or there is a new one by Susan Bernofsky I believe.

Jennifer, which translation are you reading/listening to? I recently read the John E Woods translation, a big improvement on the Lowe-Porter one.

I found the early parts mesmerising and the mid parts flabbergasting. But overall, brilliant.

Charles wrote: "I hated this book so much. Not sure print format worked any better for it, but I'm obviously biased. :P"

Oh, no! You hated this, Charles? Why? Was it all the philosophical discussions, or the focus on death? Something else?

Katia wrote: "I am not sure as well, Jennifer, especially the second part when a lot of it is this type of a debate between the two men:-) In general, the first time I've read it I struggled to like it never min..."

That's what I'm finding, too, Katia. The first part was fine through audio, the narrator lively. But those last two chapters were chock full of philosophy, I had to keep rewinding and stop what else I was doing. I am listening to the Woods' translation. You are a scholar to have read this twice! And yet, I get it—there's much to absorb... :)

You are a brave soul. I'd NEVER even attempt this one.

Oh, I don't know, one minute people are acting like nutjobs in a refectory, the other a young man gives off the vibe of an asthmatic grandma in bed. Rinse and repeat, and this went on just about forever. I know everyone loves this, but I couldn't wait to be done with the thing. Torture! lol

I'm with Charles on this one. I was bored out of my mind. I only finished because I was reading it with a group, very short sections at a time. I consider it a waste of my time, except that I can say I read it. I did love Buddenbrooks tho!

Same. Totally on board with Buddenbrooks. Night and day.

Nick wrote: "Jennifer, which translation are you reading/listening to? I recently read the John E Woods translation, a big improvement on the Lowe-Porter one.

I found the early parts mesmerising and the mid pa..."

So, Nick, from my quote am I in the flabbergasting stage yet? I’m about halfway through. I’m listening to the Woods’ version, yes. All this death—is it about the preciousness of life? That would fit too with all the talk of time, but I find the book strange somehow, despite its focus on survival.

Berengaria wrote: "You are a brave soul. I'd NEVER even attempt this one."

Haha, is that b/c of the length, Berengaria?

Charles wrote: "Oh, I don't know, one minute people are acting like nutjobs in a refectory, the other a young man gives off the vibe of an asthmatic grandma in bed. Rinse and repeat, and this went on just about fo..."

Ah, you're cracking me up, Charles. Do most people love this? I'm reading it b/c my aunt who turned me onto many classics as a child felt I should read it. It's too much about survival for me and the little depth so far on the maybe-budding romance feels repetitive BECAUSE of its shallowness so far, but I love the setting and the cult feeling, and find some of the philosophy interesting given the time it was written. The audible narrator is lively and entertaining, although at times bordering on British ham—sometimes I slow him down with the controls, lol. I can't decide if I should transfer to the page for an attempt at immersion, or if I have a better chance of finishing what feels a bit like watching a play...?

Jennifer wrote: "Nick wrote: "Jennifer, which translation are you reading/listening to? I recently read the John E Woods translation, a big improvement on the Lowe-Porter one.

I found the early parts mesmerising a..."

Oh, it certainly is about time and death, but more about time. And as for the magic part, I tried to understand it in my review of it.

And it's about that period of the belle epoch, racing towards its own oblivion, living in a parallel dimension, a little sick, but hardly knowing it, preferring to be sick like Hans Castorp. Who was fit as could be. Why would a young man want to have a sick not from life for years?

But all that Settembrini-Naftha stuff is really over the top. But its a novel. It can be what it wants to be.

Diane, there is something about being able to say you’ve read it, isn’t there? I haven’t gotten bored yet, but I’m not even halfway through and am taking my sweet time, with lots of reads in between. Interesting that you’d recommend Buddenbrooks, despite your dislike for this. I’m guessing you read that first?

I did read Buddenbrooks first. It was a great family saga, and totally different from Magic Mountain.

Diane wrote: "I did read Buddenbrooks first. It was a great family saga, and totally different from Magic Mountain."

Good to know, thank you! Between your rec and Charles', it's now a must for me... :)

Charles, I’ve always been curious about that one, and your encouragement along with Diane’s, and your mutual dislike for this, lol, is making me want to read that. If it’s another tome, it may need to wait.

Thanks, Nick! I’ll definitely hop over to your review once I’m done, it sounds like there’s lots to think about. It feels a bit like cheating, listening to this instead of reading it on the page, but it’s so full, I might just miss a lot on the page, too. I’m looking forward to seeing how you, and other insightful readers, made sense of this.