2016 NYRB Selection for Sept.

Walser's short stories are really more like flash fiction, though that term had not been invented when his work was first published.  If you have read Italio Calvino, you might want to try Walser for the writing, magic, and absurdity are very similar, though Calvino is the better writer.   

The best stories in this collection are the ones about the kittens, the spirit of the forest, and the murderess.  There is some humor as well, as in the one about the dentist.

                This book is one of those that are instant cover lover.  It is also a good read.

                 A friend of mine who read the back cover said it sounds like a mixture of British comedy, Shirley Jackson, and Monty Python.  (Yes, I know).

                He’s not far off.

                The witches’ brew works too.

                The novel centers on a town in Germany that sits near two lakes.  It is an old town with old traditions and old mysteries.

                The difficult thing is that it is impossible to write a review without spoilers.  The language is wonderful, so odds are the translation is good.  The story is told in short chapters. There is the old man who may or may not be attempting to commit suicide.  There is the assistant bell ringer.  There is the bar owner, though it isn’t really a bar.  There is the woman who runs the historic building.  There is the egg seller.  There is the young woman who is leaving town in some way.  There is the vixen. 

                And there is the narrator.

                It is such a lovely novel.  It really is.  There is magic in it.   If you like fairy tales, folklore, ghost stories, vixens,

June 2016 NYRB Book Club Selection.


Baum's book is a slow start. It took me awhile to get into it. But then when you get to the ballerina and the thief, it is so beautiful. What is amazing, in some aspects, is how little things have changed.

Disclaimer: ARC via Netgalley. (However, I pre-ordered a kindle edition of the book prior to ARC approval).

                I had heard of Von Schonwerth before the discovery of his trove by Erika Eichenseer, so I was looking forward to this book. The blurb likens von Schonwerth to Perrault, the Grimms, and Andersen – making the “trio” a quartet (we can discuss the leaving out of the women salon writers ourselves). This isn’t quite the case.

                This isn’t because the stories aren’t grand; they are. But considering today’s squeamish about children’s stories, I can’t see many parents reading these stories to their children.

                This is a shame really.

                In many ways, von Schonwerth is better than the Grimms simply because he didn’t adjust (clean, scour, sanitize – chose the preferred term) the stories the same way the Grimms did. Hence the tales collected her tend to be on the earthy side. In fact, unlike the Grimm stories, several of the tales in this collection lend themselves quite readily to being recited at the local bar, properly over a nice dark beer.

                Another aspect of the stories that set them apart not only from the Grimms, but also from Perrault and Andersen are the women in the stories. The girls and women are far stronger, more determined, and resourceful than the pretty princesses of the Grimms, the silly girls of Perrault, or the suffering or damned women of Andersen.   There is Ashfeathers who is not a normal Cinderella, there is a variation of Rumpelstilken with far better women, and there is a mother who stops at nothing to protect her son. Even though she has been turned into a horse. The father in this strange family? Well, it’s his fault.

                Several of the stories are types (in otherwise, they have basic plots) that most readers of fairy tales will be familiar with, the surprise and charm lies in the twists (or the earthiness) of the stories. Honestly, Thumbnickel is both the grossest and the best version of Tom Thumb I have ever read. It involves a cow and poop. There is absolutely no moral, and it is fabulous!

                Another favorite is a story about a girl who saves a weasel. In many ways, this short and sweet play upon Beauty and the Beast is far more beautiful in terms of religion than the Grimms’ fables with the religious elements are heavily stressed. The mermaid stories are also far more beautiful and stunning than any Andersen short story.

                This collection also includes two introductions, one by Eichenseer who discusses the finding of the tales; the other by Maria Tatar that places the stories in content. Of more interest are the notes at the end of the book, detailing not only the tale type but making comparisons and other general remarks.