Actuel Editions Beware of Pity
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"Stefan Zweig's brilliant novel, Beware of Pity , is an original and powerful work."- The New York Times The great Austrian writer Stefan Zweig was a master anatomist of the deceitful heart, and Beware of Pity , the only novel he published during his lifetime, uncovers the seed of selfishness within even the finest of feelings. Beware of Pity is an almost unbearably tense and powerful tale of unrequited love and the danger of pity. In 1913, Hofmiller, an Austro-Hungarian cavalry officer stationed at the edge of the empire, is invited to a party at the home of a rich local landowner, a world away from the dreary routine of the barracks. The surroundings are glamorous, wine flows freely, and the exhilarated young Hofmiller asks his host's lovely daughter for a dance, only to discover that sickness has left her painfully crippled. It is a minor blunder that will destroy his life, as pity and guilt gradually implicate him in a well-meaning but tragically wrongheaded plot to restore the unhappy invalid to health. Stefan Zweig's only novel is a devastating depiction of the torment of the betrayal of both honour and love, realised against the background of the disintegration of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. 'The novel I'll really remember reading this year is Stefan Zweig's frighteningly gripping Beware of Pity , first published in 1939 ... an intoxicating, morally shaking read about human responsibilities and a real reminder of what fiction can do best' - Times Literary Supplement About the author Stefan Zweig (1881-1942) was an Austrian novelist, poet, playwright and biographer. Born into an Austrian--Jewish family in 1881, he became a leading figure in Vienna's cultural world and was famed for his gripping novellas and biographies. At the height of his literary career, in the 1920s and 1930s, he was one of the most popular writers in the world: extremely popular in the United States, South America and Europe - he remains so in continental Europe - however, he was largely ignored by the British public. Zweig is best known for his novellas (notably The Burning Secret , The Royal Game , Amok , and Letter from an Unknown Woman ; novels ( Beware of Pity , Confusion , and the post-humously published The Post Office Girl ); and his vivid psychological biographical essays on famous writers and thinkers such as Erasmus, Tolstoy, Balzac, Stendhal, Nietzsche, Dostoevsky, Dickens, Freud and Mesmer. In 1934, with the rise of Nazism, Zweig fled from Salzburg to London, then to New York, and finally to Brazil. Zweig's memoir, The World of Yesterday , was completed in 1942, one day before Zweig and his second wife were found dead, following an apparent double suicide. Review: Not as expected - Enjoyed the read never the less Review: Tolles Buch - Ein wirklich schönes Buch, mit schöner Geschichte und man erfährt noch einiges über die Zeit von damals.
| Best Sellers Rank | #445,142 in Books ( See Top 100 in Books ) #301 in Psychological Thrillers #653 in Classic Literature & Fiction #1,919 in Literary Fiction |
| Customer Reviews | 4.6 out of 5 stars 227 Reviews |
D**G
Not as expected
Enjoyed the read never the less
C**N
Tolles Buch
Ein wirklich schönes Buch, mit schöner Geschichte und man erfährt noch einiges über die Zeit von damals.
A**N
One of the Most Intense Novels I've Ever Read
Not only for myself, Stefan Zweig is being discovered all over again by readers worldwide. He was a bestseller and widely read German writer in his own time, but sank into oblivion (rather forced to) due to his self imposed exile to avoid nazi nuisance and later his sudden, shocking demise by suicide. But thanks to Pushkin Press, Zweig is getting re-discovered again, his time of oblivion is over for good. There is another standard translation of Beware of Pity published by Penguin titled "Impatience of the Heart". (Another one is there by Rupa Publication, too. But I don't know much about that.) But in my humble opinion the one translated by Anthea Bell (Pushkin Press edition) is more definitive than the Penguin version. Coming to the novel itself, this is nothing but a masterpiece. An original and powerful exploration of human emotions. A tense, feverish, exciting tale structured with gripping intensity. Sunday Telegraph advices in their review of the book that "you should go out at once and buy his books". I couldn't agree more.
B**Z
A heart-breaking work of staggering genius
...no, not the book by Dave Eggers, but this masterpiece by Stefan Zweig. I came upon this by accident, and bought it, intrigued by the story outline and the reviews below. Only very, very rarely does a book have the power to draw me into the lives of the characters, probably because they're usually just that - characters. Not so here. Here we have flesh and blood and all that entails. I'm still amazed at Zweig's story telling. He's the kind of writer who could make a shopping list fascinating. I lived and breathed every single word in this incredibly beautiful book, and as Nigel Rodgers has accurately said below, the tension becomes almost unendurable. I can hardly do justice to it in a few words. Weirdly, I often found myself smiling, not because it's a funny book, far from it, but just through an appreciation of Zweig's supreme mastery of his art. This is one of those books appearing only a few times in your life that wring emotion out of you whether you like it or not. A heart-breaking, unforgettable and life-enriching experience. Kudos to Pushkin Press for publishing a very handsome new edition. I'd also like to praise the translation, too, by Trevor and Phyllis Blewitt. At no time is there even a hint that you're reading a translation - something that occurred to me only after finishing the book. On the contrary, it seems to me that the elegance of the language and all the magnificent virtues that contribute to Zweig's humanity and genius have been faithfully rendered. The proof is in my twin disappointments; coming to the end, and learning that there are no further full-length novels by Zweig. I'll definitely be reading all his other works, though.
S**N
Poses very ethical questions in a highly readable novel
A very good story, which highlights the dangers of not being honest and then caught in a trap. A must to read.
A**3
Beautiful edition.
A proper and neatly packaged product by the seller, kudos to them(Trans Infopreneur Inc)
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