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Lyric Novella
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Format: Paperback / softback
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Lyric Novella
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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?
Lyric Novella appeals to readers interested in mid-20th-century European literature, LGBTQ+ themes, and psychologically rich narratives that intersect personal and political upheaval.
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Book Hero Magic formatted this description to make it easier to read. While it's new and
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Description
Schwarzenbach’s clear, psychologically acute prose makes this novella an evocative narrative, with many intriguing parallels to her own life.
Annemarie Schwarzenbach—journalist, novelist, antifascist, archaeologist, and traveller—has become a European cult figure for bohemian free spirits since the rediscovery of her works in the late 1980s. Lyric Novella is her story of a young man’s obsession with a Berlin variété actress.
Despite having his future career mapped out for him in the diplomatic service, the young man begins to question all his family values under Sibylle’s spell. His family, future, and social standing become irrelevant when set against his overriding compulsion to pick her up every night from the theatre so they can go for a drive.
Bringing the story back to her own life, Schwarzenbach admitted after publication that her hero was in fact a young woman, not a man, leaving little doubt that Lyric Novella is a literary tale of lesbian love during socially and politically turbulent times.
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?
Neue Zürcher Zeitung praises the novella for exploring not failed love but 'the failure of love' through the protagonist's inability to accept responsibility towards their beloved. Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung notes the work's period character, describing it as 'gentle, silent and veiled,' with its hero actually a heroine who prefers invisibility.
Book Details
INFORMATION
ISBN: 9781803090375
Publisher: Seagull Books London Ltd
Format: Paperback / softback
Date Published: 23 September 2022
Country: United Kingdom
Imprint: Seagull Books London Ltd
Audience: Professional and scholarly
DIMENSIONS
Spine width: 9.0mm
Width: 129.0mm
Height: 207.0mm
Weight: 126g
Pages: 138
About the Author
Annemarie Schwarzenbach (1908–42) was a writer, journalist, and photographer who worked periodically as an archaeologist. She is the author of the poem Aus Tétouan, Der Krater der Tiere, Das Wunder des Baumes. Lucy Renner Jones is a freelance translator living in Berlin.
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