Henry, I'm inspired to read it. I read it decades ago when I was in my twenties , which means it will be fresh, almost a first read. Which translation did you read?
Also, did you read Colm Toibin's fictional biography of TM, The Magician? I thought it was terrific.
I read the John E Woods trans and find it very good—I think the other one is quite old. I have not read any Toibin! But once I have read more Mann I will certainly try it
Fantastic book. Probably Mann's best. The nuances are just so spot on. They are almost cruel. It is also quite representative of the Northern German milieu of that time.
Yes! “Buddenbrooks” is one of the greatest novels ever written— the culmination of the Realist tradition. It is also a novel that appeals to nearly everyone, not a quality one associates with Mann’s other major novels.
I know many people who resist reading “Buddenbrooks” because they fear it is formidably intellectual. Once they start reading it, they can’t stop.
I can't get over how he -Mann- k n e w, being so very young, how acutely he understood people. There is something outwordly in his genius.
And -not to spoil- but it's, for me, with some of the saddest books I have read. One gets attached , really attached...and it's so, so painful. Toward the end.
The book I love so much, and is so poignant, that I'm scared to re-read it. It's akin to going to same funeral again, or so it feels now. Maybe it'll change, or so I hope, for I love re-reading: one always learns something new as he himself changes since too.
YES!!!! I read this book in February on vacation in Cancun, with the odd sensation of traveling between North Germany and the tropical sea. I loved this book so much. The ending is a gut punch (but then it's right there in the title). In his book "Wagnerism", Alex Ross discusses Mann's Ring Cycle inspiration (both begin with a real estate deal) in crafting the book, and its leitmotifs (e.g. Antoine's invocation of all who had wronged her). So many layers to this amazing novel. Bergman's Fanny and Alexander must've been inspired by Buddenbrooks (The opening Christmas scenes are basically an adaptation). I really hope this becomes the Substack novel of the Spring.
Henry, I'm inspired to read it. I read it decades ago when I was in my twenties , which means it will be fresh, almost a first read. Which translation did you read?
Also, did you read Colm Toibin's fictional biography of TM, The Magician? I thought it was terrific.
I read the John E Woods trans and find it very good—I think the other one is quite old. I have not read any Toibin! But once I have read more Mann I will certainly try it
Fantastic book. Probably Mann's best. The nuances are just so spot on. They are almost cruel. It is also quite representative of the Northern German milieu of that time.
Yes! “Buddenbrooks” is one of the greatest novels ever written— the culmination of the Realist tradition. It is also a novel that appeals to nearly everyone, not a quality one associates with Mann’s other major novels.
I know many people who resist reading “Buddenbrooks” because they fear it is formidably intellectual. Once they start reading it, they can’t stop.
I was totally swept up what a wonderful charming book
I can't get over how he -Mann- k n e w, being so very young, how acutely he understood people. There is something outwordly in his genius.
And -not to spoil- but it's, for me, with some of the saddest books I have read. One gets attached , really attached...and it's so, so painful. Toward the end.
The book I love so much, and is so poignant, that I'm scared to re-read it. It's akin to going to same funeral again, or so it feels now. Maybe it'll change, or so I hope, for I love re-reading: one always learns something new as he himself changes since too.
Thank you for writing about it, Henry.
YES!!!! I read this book in February on vacation in Cancun, with the odd sensation of traveling between North Germany and the tropical sea. I loved this book so much. The ending is a gut punch (but then it's right there in the title). In his book "Wagnerism", Alex Ross discusses Mann's Ring Cycle inspiration (both begin with a real estate deal) in crafting the book, and its leitmotifs (e.g. Antoine's invocation of all who had wronged her). So many layers to this amazing novel. Bergman's Fanny and Alexander must've been inspired by Buddenbrooks (The opening Christmas scenes are basically an adaptation). I really hope this becomes the Substack novel of the Spring.