Pollak's Arm

Name: Pollak's Arm
Brand: Unknown
SKU: 9781954404007
Price: 34.99 NZD
Availability: InStock

By Hans Von Trotha

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3.88

( 336 ratings, 75 reviews)

Summary

Set in Nazi-occupied Rome on October 16, 1943, Pollak's Arm recounts the urgent story of Ludwig Pollak, a Jewish archaeologist and antiquities expert whose life is at risk as the Gestapo plans to round up Rome's Jewish population. As Monsignor F. sends an envoy to rescue Pollak and his family, Pollak hesitates to leave, instead sharing a captivating account of his life—from his academic aspirations barred by prejudice to his celebrated discovery of a missing arm from the Laocoön sculpture. This novel explores the stark contrast between culture and barbarism through the lens of a man devoted to knowledge and art.
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Format: Paperback / softback

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Pollak's Arm

$34⁹⁹

Book Hero Magic created this recommendation. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! IS THIS YOUR NEXT READ?

Ideal for readers interested in historical fiction, art history, and World War II narratives, as well as those drawn to stories exploring the resilience of culture under threat.

Description

Enthralling ... A great read. - Philippe de Montebello, former director, Metropolitan Museum of Art

October 16, 1943, inside the Vatican as darkness descends upon Rome. Having been alerted to the Nazi plan to round up the city's Jewish population the next day, Monsignor F. dispatches an envoy to a nearby palazzo to bring Ludwig Pollak and his family to safety within the papal premises. But Pollak shows himself in no hurry to leave his home and accept the eleventh-hour offer of refuge.

Pollak's visitor is obliged to take a seat and listen as he recounts his life story: how he studied archaeology in Prague, his passion for Italy and Goethe, how he became a renowned antiquities dealer and advisor to great collectors like J. P. Morgan and the Austro-Hungarian emperor after his own Jewishness barred him from an academic career, and finally his spectacular discovery of the missing arm from the majestic ancient sculpture of Laocoön and his sons.

Torn between hearing Pollak's spellbinding tale and the urgent mission to save the archaeologist from certain annihilation, the Vatican's anxious messenger presses him to make haste and depart.

This stunning novel illuminates the chasm between civilisation and barbarism by spotlighting a now little-known figure devoted to knowledge and the power of artistic creation.

Book Hero Magic summarised reviews for this book. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! HOW HAS THIS BEEN REVIEWED?

Praised by The New York Review of Books for its "spellbinding tales," this haunting novel is lauded as "quietly powerful" and a "deeply moving read" by The New Criterion. The New York Sun highlights it as a "timely reminder" of art's fragility amid conflict and calls it "a love letter to art." Translated beautifully into English, the book blends tension and emotion, making it an absorbing page-turner.

Book Details

INFORMATION

ISBN: 9781954404007

Publisher: New Vessel Press

Format: Paperback / softback

Date Published: 31 March 2022

Country: United States

Imprint: New Vessel Press

Illustration: 2 Illustrations

Contributors:

Translated by Elisabeth Lauffer
Translated by Elisabeth Lauffer

Audience: General / adult

DIMENSIONS

Width: 133.0mm

Height: 203.0mm

Weight: 250g

Pages: 160

Collections

Fiction General Fiction Hans Von Trotha Historical Fiction

About the Author

Hans von Trotha is a German historian, novelist and journalist who spent ten years as editorial director of the Nicolai publishing house in Berlin. Elisabeth Lauffer is the recipient of the 2014 Gutekunst Translation Prize. After graduating from Wesleyan University she lived in Berlin where she worked as a commercial translator and then obtained a master’s in education from Harvard.