![]() ![]() The final nail in the coffin is the novel’s prewar setting, one that feels alien enough for many cultural references to go unheeded. Most translations leave much to be desired: The New York Times’ lede that the characters are “considerably closer to speaking English” in one edition is a backhanded compliment of the highest order. At over 700 pages, it is thick, dense, and occasionally a slog. It gives a voice to those who are on uncertain terms with time itself.īy most accounts, the German Nobel Laurete’s novel is a difficult read. ![]() ![]() Right now, Thomas Mann’s “The Magic Mountain” is that art. It may be tempting to look backward to figure out how to feel during tumultuous periods, but art can more accurately reflect the true emotions of the past than a history textbook. Everything is happening around us, but so little of it happens to us. Life before Covid-19 feels like a century ago and yesterday at the same time. ![]()
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