Death in Venice and Other Stories

I read modern novels, etc. but always end up with a feeling that something is missing. That something is the stuff of true literature. Literature shows a love of language and the ability tp paint a scene so that you feel you are there; it displays an ability to describe a character so that you feel you actually know him; it can take a simple plot and make it enthralling and it can leave you with the feeling that you want to read it again. But if you want to read literature today you must turn to the past. The in a hurry modern reader will not allow our authors to write literature.Far be it for me to write a review of Thomas Mann. These short stories are literature. That is critique enough.

There’s a certain art, or less flatteringly, a formula to Thomas Mann’s short stories. Dialogue is minimal while there is attention paid to every minute detail of the setting. The protagonists are well drawn and emerge as full personalities but rarely undergo growth or change.This makes them ideal if you want to travel back to Germany before the First World War. A real sense of the people and culture is strewn throughout Mann’s short stories.They may not all be classics but they do make for good reading. If you want an extended glimpse at Europe before the catastrophic shattering of a world that was 1914, I strongly recommend reading Mann.

Forget the hackneyed dispute between "fidelity" and "beauty" as the supposedly incompatible aims of translation. David Luke proves, in this wonderful rendering of Der Tod in Venedig, that the two values need not be in conflict. What flows from Luke's mastery of both English and German is natural grace, at once faithful and beautiful, capable of reaching and sustaining the heights of Thomas Mann's prose.

When compared to other translations, this one is mediocre at best. Thomas Mann was such a master of language, it's a shame to make do with a translation that's not literal or that doesn't reflect his talent with language.

it until now. I am glad to have finally read it. I found that Thomas Mann always had the last word in each of his short stories. I recommend thisbook to anyone over 18 years old so they can understand the writing.

I could read these short stories and a short novella but even I had to look up occasional words. If you don't think you have a good vocabulary then I don't recommend these stories. But the writing is truly well thought out well structured and just plain awe inspiring.

This translation is arguably superior to the work of Porter-Lowe, Mann's "official" translator (who won his whole-hearted approval, which tells you that foreign authors who speak English as a second language are sometimes bad judges of English translations of their works.)Some of the stories are very good, but the fame of the title yarn has always escaped me. I wouldn't put it in the category of dreck a la Nabokov, but formally and aesthetically it's definitely second-rate. That we now know Mann was bisexual, perhaps predominantly homosexual, doesn't add much to my understanding of why the story is so celebrated.Mann was hyperconscious of his rank in the line of German literature from Goethe to Nietzsche, and while some of his novels are masterpieces (ZAUBERBERG and DOKTOR FAUSTUS), his assumed magisterial attitude rings false. His essays on Schopenhauer, Wagner, Nietzsche, and Freud are interesting, but far from the standard he apparently thought he was setting. Susan Sontag thought he was a "stuffed shirt", which is too harsh a judgement but one sees what she means.However, if you're going to read Mann's most famous short stories, Luke's is now the translation of choice.

After reading Death in Venice, I couldn't resist ordering Joseph and His Brothers by Mann. The quality of his writing is stimulating as far as adventure goes and comforting as philosophically sound. In fact, for me he makes sense about the value of what we are currently experiencing as a period of excavation in preparation for the next phase of our development. His convincing perspective keeps me alert to the value of how I meet the challenges more than giving power to the people and events. It's more than classroom philosophy since it's life changing practical in application.

There's no question as to the high quality of the stories in this volume. But the late David Luke was a superb translator. His Goethe and his Kleist are outstanding, but the renditions of Mann's novellas put the prior work of Lowe-Porter to shame. Luke's "Death in Venice" and "Tristan" are notable. But this is a brilliant volume ... for the author and for his translator.

A most beautifully conceived and written novella - exquisite descriptions - a joy and honour to read.You may already know the book - certainly the story - but do read this it if not or re- read - it’s so wonderful.

Very good collection of stories. Love to have this.

I thought I should read this book as it is on several "best books" lists, and having watched the film several decades ago. I appreciate the literary expertise and structure but my, my, this Mann can write in long sentences such that by the time one has got to the end of a very complex sentence with a multitude of sub-clauses, one has forgotten how the sentence started and its main point; meaning that in several places, amongst a whole load of abstract descriptive language I had to re-read the whole sentence to try to discover what on earth he was talking about, thereby ruining the rythym of reading and the enjoyment of the book in general. (Geddit?)

Great book. But they charged me 282 although the price is printed as 250.