Beware of Pity

Enjoyed the read never the less

Ein wirklich schönes Buch, mit schöner Geschichte und man erfährt noch einiges über die Zeit von damals.

I came to this book with some trepidation, firstly because it looked rather long and dense (long is fine, but long and dense maybe not) and secondly because the topic of a mistaken love affair is not really up my street. However, it was the January choice of my book group, so I had to read it. Within a few pages I was hooked. The novel, set in the Austro-Hungarian empire in the early part of the 20th century, tells the story of a young second lieutenant who finds himself embroiled in a relationship with a partly paralysed 17 year old girl. Her family encourage the relationship and it is only when it is too late that he discovers the girl's love for him and also the impossibility of breaking her heart at a time she is about to embark on a new course of medical treatment, so she can get better "just for him". The novel is not just about love, it is about obsession, guilt, and the way the expectations of others can so easily dominate our choices so that we act as others expect us rather than as we want to. It is interesting to view this story in the light of modern assertiveness training, because all the way through the reader can see that Toni, the young officer, is subjugating his own needs for the needs of someone to whom he has no obligations whatsoever - he is in fact ruled only by her fantasies and the expectations of her father and sister. The novel is remarkably suspenseful because the plot unfolds gradually and at each stage the reader cringes as the net of this sick love slowly ensnares him. It is full of strong characters: the doctor who treats the young woman and slowly enveigles Toni in her treatment regime; the old brutal colonel who turns out to be more wise than the other characters; the girls father who's whole life is a quest for his daughter's well-being. Different aspects of these characters are revealed as the novel slowly travels towards its inevitable conclusion and each one has a unique role in the ensnarement and ultimate release of the young officer. The novel is beautifully produced by Pushkin press - the clear typeface, fine paper and strong cover makes this a pleasure to read. Alas, this is Zweig's only novel and I was left thirsting for more from this fine writer.

A proper and neatly packaged product by the seller, kudos to them(Trans Infopreneur Inc)

Set in the Austro-Hungarian Empire just before the outbreak of the First World War, a story which you might expect to find dated proves very gripping. It is written from the viewpoint of Anton Hofmiller, as he looks back ruefully to the time when, as a young cavalry officer, emotionally undeveloped after spending his adolescence in army training, he was first flattered to be wined, dined and treated with unwonted respect in the house of a wealthy local aristocrat, then moved by the plight of the teenage daughter of the house, paralysed by an unspecified illness. Although you may guess the general direction of the tale it is remarkable for the depth with which Zweig explores the narrator's complex emotions, and for the vivid evocation of a world about to end - the privileged, snobbish, ritualistic ostrich-like world of the ossified Austro-Hungarian army. He describes with great realism the joys of riding in close formation with one's men, or galloping freely across the countryside, the huge social pressure to conform in this community rife with gossip and banter bordering on bullying. The book reminds me strongly of Roth's "The Radestky March". If the style sometimes seems anti-semitic, this must be a reflection of the times, since Zweig was himself a Jew. I admit to finding the emotional intensity overwhelming at times, although Zweig has a gift for taking you to the limit of endurance and then introducing a fresh development which releases the tension and shifts you to a contrasting mood - which may in turn become too much. In view of Zweig's suicide during World War 2, a few years after this book was written, one wonders how much it reflects the overwrought emotional rollercoaster of his own thoughts. I understand why some reviewers feel the plot is too slight for a full length novel, but on balance Zweig "carries it off" as a psychological study and period piece. I could have done without the "frame" device used, apparently quite popular in the early C20, i.e. to commence with another narrator describing how he meets Hofmiller who implausibly recounts the story in great detail. Recommended for reading on Kindle.

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.