Kully knows some things you don't learn at school. She knows how to roll a cigarette and pack a suitcase. She knows that cars are more dangerous than lions. And she knows that she and her parents can't go back to Germany again - her father's books are banned there. But there are also things she doesn't understand.
Thursday, September 25, 2008
Child of All Nations
Child of All Nations by Irmgard Keun, translated from the German by Michael Hofmann
Kully knows some things you don't learn at school. She knows how to roll a cigarette and pack a suitcase. She knows that cars are more dangerous than lions. And she knows that she and her parents can't go back to Germany again - her father's books are banned there. But there are also things she doesn't understand.
Kully knows some things you don't learn at school. She knows how to roll a cigarette and pack a suitcase. She knows that cars are more dangerous than lions. And she knows that she and her parents can't go back to Germany again - her father's books are banned there. But there are also things she doesn't understand.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
Posts
1 comment:
...An utterly compelling look at pre-World War II Germany. Kully is one of literature's great child narrators, and her creator manages to generate pathos without resorting to melodrama or sentimental exaggeration. Poignant, especially for contemporary readers who know that far greater horrors were still to come.
Post a Comment