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Yes! Thomas Mann was in the list of difficult books. I remember marveling how he set up a joke in Buddenbrooks 50 pages before springing the punchline. He's an
by hodgesrm 8y ago
Yes! Thomas Mann was in the list of difficult books. I remember marveling how he set up a joke in Buddenbrooks 50 pages before springing the punchline. He's an incredibly disciplined and patient storyteller.
Who is your favorite 'difficult' author?
- bshimmin 8y agoI've been very gently dipping into Proust for the last year or so: I find it hard to read more than a few pages of À la recherche... at a time (mostly due to the exhaustions of work and children), but when I do, I always enjoy it. Just the other day I realised I'd read a number of pages which did nothing more than describe a man waking up and getting out of bed; when I realised this, I laughed out loud at the preposterousness of it.
- hodgesrm 8y agoThis. That's exactly how some of Mann's jokes work. I've had the same experience with A la recherche. After a while you realize the author is kind of having you on. (Not always of course but there's definitely satirical humor in these accounts.)
- taejo 8y agoI've had Buddenbrooks on my Kindle for ages and I was just starting to think my German had improved enough to give it another attempt, but I struggle with that kind of thing even in my native language.