This novel by Philip Roth makes use of a notorious German theme - the most ugly aspect of our otherwise respectable history. More than 60 years have passed since then and putting the swastika on a book's cover - even if written by a Jewish author - is verboten. That is why the publisher had to produce a different cover for the German market, not only for the German translation but also for the untranslated version. Go to any book store in Germany and you will only see the black cross on the cover. I had to go abroad to buy the novel with the original cover.
I did not choose this book because of its German theme but because of Philip Roth, as it should be. The first book I read of him was Portnoy's Complaint when I was a teenager or in my early 20s. After that I did not read any of his books for a long time, but eventually I read his American Pastoral because it was so widely praised. I have to admit Roth is a little above my head, at least when reading him in English. If there is a next American writer who will be awarded the Nobel Prize, he is the top candidate. A few years ago he would have had to fight it out with John Updike, who had the edge over him a decade ago. Who is the American author who can match him today?
About his recent novel Everyman, I think it will gain when I am 20 or so years older.
Talking about the Nobel Prize: if you haven't read Jose Saramago's Blindness yet, you still have a huge discovery to make. I envy you...
No comments:
Post a Comment