Read more
Almost a century after Kafka’s death, his works continue to intrigue and haunt us. Even for those who are only fleetingly acquainted with his novels, or his stories, diaries, and letters, ‘Kafkaesque’ has become a byword for the menacing, unfathomable absurdity of modern existence and bureaucracy. Yet for all its universal significance, Kafka’s writing remains inextricably bound up with his life and work in Prague, where he spent every one of his forty years. Klaus Wagenbach’s account of Kafka’s life in the city is a meticulously researched insight into the author’s family life, his education and employment, his attitude toward the town of his birth, his literary influences, and his relationships with women. The result is a fascinating portrait of the 20th century’s most enigmatic writer and the city that provided him with so much inspiration.
About the author
Klaus Wagenbach is a publisher and a leading authority on Kafka. He was the first German-speaking researcher to access the author's papers and other primary sources in Czechoslovakia and Israel. His books on Kafka include
Franz Kafka: The Early Years.
Ewald Osers was a Czech-born translator an poet.
Peter Lewis has had careers in university teaching and publishing and now works as a freelance translator and author. His recent translations include Asfa-Wossen Asserate's
King of Kings: The Triumph and Tragedy of Emperor Haile Selassie I of Ethiopia; Johannes Fried's
Charlemagne: A Biography; and Gunnar Decker's
Hesse: The Wanderer and His Shadow.
Summary
Klaus Wagenbach's account of Kafka's life in the city is a meticulously researched insight into the author's family background, his education and employment, his attitude toward the town of his birth, his literary influences, and his relationships with women.
