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3rd out of 24 books
—
6 voters
The Vision of Emma Blau
by
Ursula Hegi
The Vision of Emma Blau is the luminous epic of a bicultural family filled with passion and aspirations, tragedy and redemption. At the beginning of the twentieth century, Stefan Blau, whom readers will remember from Stones from the River, flees Burgdorf, a small town in Germany, and comes to America in search of the vision he has dreamed of every night. The novel closes n...more
Paperback, 432 pages
Published
January 16th 2001
by Touchstone
(first published 2000)
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Ohhh...the dregs of reading this book.
At first I thought I lost my "zest" for reading when in reality I lost my appetite for reading this book. Many times over I would have to glance at the cover to re-read the author's name - not sure if Ursula Hegi was a woman. She has a very masculine prespective.
Well, let's see, The Vision of Emma Blau isn't entirely about Miss Emma but rather her lineage. Her Grandpa, Stefen Blau, ran away from Germany to America at a ripe, young age and stared a new life,...more
At first I thought I lost my "zest" for reading when in reality I lost my appetite for reading this book. Many times over I would have to glance at the cover to re-read the author's name - not sure if Ursula Hegi was a woman. She has a very masculine prespective.
Well, let's see, The Vision of Emma Blau isn't entirely about Miss Emma but rather her lineage. Her Grandpa, Stefen Blau, ran away from Germany to America at a ripe, young age and stared a new life,...more
Teen-aged Stefan Blau runs away from his family in Germany to America where he learns his trade as a chef. He settles in a small New Hampshire town, marries and starts and family, and eventually builds a splendid six-story apartment house on the shores of Lake Winnepesaukee. Aha, I thought, this is the book for me. I like multigenerational stories, and I know some of the little towns near “the lake” in central New Hampshire. But the setting never really came alive for me; the story could have ta...more
This was a good book, although not as good as Stones from the River, by the same author. I wouldn't call this a 'sequel' although there is some character overlap. The two books stand alone though. The strength of this book lies in its characters. Everyone is likeable yet flawed, but not overly-flawed. Some, more flawed than others. Some, more likeable than others. Even the "bit" characters are wonderful. I especially liked the way the characters interacted. How they loved and fought like real pe...more
Ursula Hegi is a truly gifted writer with a magical ability to bring a story to life vividly. STONES FROM THE RIVER, my first literary encounter with Ms. Hegi's work, was one of my favorite books so naturally I was looking forward to reading THE VISION OF EMMA BLAU, which is a spin-off of the previously mentioned novel. Stefan Blau was the son of 2 of the villagers in Trudi Montag's hometown in Germany who ran away to America when he was 13 years old - this is the story of his American legacy.
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I was an avid fan of Stones from the River. This new book features the American side of that family. It is a book that crosses cultures and provides a rich exploration of generations within the same family. It explores the impact that one generation can have on the next. Most importantly, it focuses upon the quality of love and forgiveness and the lasting positive impact that those qualities can provide.
This provides the book with a deeply spiritual theme. As the author of a spiritually-themed n...more
This provides the book with a deeply spiritual theme. As the author of a spiritually-themed n...more
This book is a companion novel to Stones from the River. Stones from the River is an outstanding novel which follows the lives of citizens of the German town Burgdorf. The Vision of Emma Blau follows some of the characters from the earlier work. It is a huge family saga about the lives of Stephan Blau and his family, from the years 1894-1990. Blau leaves Germany when he is just a teen-ager, and the book chronicles his life in America. The books share some of the same characters from the town Bur...more
Dec 24, 2008
Lauren
is currently reading it
Any book that can break my heart multiple times in the first 30 pages is worth my time, and probably yours. Hegi is my new favorite -- her books feel anchored deeply in an experience of life that pulls no punches and yet always manages to feel celebratory. At the same time there is something gritty and, I think, very German about her characters and their lives -- though I am not sure I why I think this, aside from the obvious fact that they are German immigrants and the subsequent German-America...more
Ursula Hegi's three generation family saga starts brilliantly and ends well, but in the middle, it becomes cumbersome and tiring. In movie trilogies, the second episode often seems like it is only there to connect the first and the third. I felt the same way about the middle generation in this story of the family started by a German immigrant at the turn of the 20th century. Like the apartment block he envisions, builds, protects and loves, his family also begins to develop fractures and cracks...more
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Years ago I read Stones from the River, by the same author, and now I want to reread it. This book explores the way that a passion for work and for a thing (in this instance, an apartment building) can destroy a family, but it ends with the possibility of redemption for Emma Blau, and that redemption happens in a very real and satisfying way, so you leave the story with a feeling of hope--always nice in this world. The family is German, living in the US, so it also says a lot about what it meant...more
I am in the mniddle of this book, not having read the previous one. That may be a bad thing since I am not enjoying this book as much as some of the reviewers did. One of the other reviewers said that they felt like there were too many story lines and that it was mostly slow and depressing. That is just what I am finding so far. Therefore, I think I am giving up on it since my reading time is limited and there are too many other book choices that I'd like to get into. It's probably just a matter...more
It was one of those exceptional books that lives at so many levels. Over and over again I found myself enchanted and in awe of the beauty of the words on the page. The characters were full and their relationships with each other complicated. We saw them as they saw themselves, as their family saw them and as the town saw them. THere were so many levels of this novel to experience. I loved Stones in the River (and Trudi does make a short appearance in this story) and this book may be my best read...more
May 02, 2010
Phair
rated it
1 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
historical-fiction,
audio-books
Why do I read this stuff? Narrated by the author with a strong German accent and a very dreamy, low inflection voice giving an overall melancholy tone to the reading. This was quite a sad story of repressed emotions & tragedies. I'm glad I was only listening to the ABRIDGED version. Not sure I could have taken much more of the parade of screwed up people. The dream-like feeling was cool- mostly because of the narrator's voice- but the events were so depressing! It was like watching a slow-m...more
Jun 13, 2010
JG (The Introverted Reader)
rated it
3 of 5 stars
Recommended to JG (The Introverted Reader) by:
Pat
Stefan Blau runs away from his home in Germany when he is a young man. He's always dreamed of living in America. He eventually finds himself in New Hampshire, building a beautiful apartment building, running a restaurant, and doing his best to provide for his family.
Honestly, this book might have suffered from too many interruptions. My review is definitely suffering from allowing too much time to go by between finishing the book and reviewing it.
I mostly enjoyed this, my problem was that I felt...more
Honestly, this book might have suffered from too many interruptions. My review is definitely suffering from allowing too much time to go by between finishing the book and reviewing it.
I mostly enjoyed this, my problem was that I felt...more
After reading Hegi's Stones from the River last month, I really wanted to read more of her writing and more about the characters from the novel. This book follows the lives of some of the supporting characters from her earlier novel, this time after they emigrate to America. It is a good book for a long afternoon; Hegi is very good at the small details and building up the layers of a long family history. I think I'm going to have to read even more of her books now.
It's been quite a while since I have read Stones From the River, which I really enjoyed. This book, The Vision of Emma Blau, was okay. It is the story of a German immigrant, Stefan, who comes to America to realize his dream of opening a restaurant and to build the grand apartment house called the Wasserburg. The family that is raised within the walls of the apartment have many issues to deal with in their lives...they are strange people at times.
I love Ursula Hegi's books. I likes Stones From the River and this is a different part of the family tree. The Hungarian/German man who comes to America by himself and builds a house/apartment building called The Wasserburg in New Hampshire. There is sadness, joy, heartache as the years go by in the Wasserburg. I love how the author delicately weaves the passing of time througout the years. Though the chapters are marked by the years so one can get a sense of the time period, the author never le...more
Ursula Hegi is magnificent! The way she captures the emotions and inner motivations that lead to the consequences and reactions of the characters is so realistic it transforms the reader. We learn about each character through their own narrative, in their own time, as this story spans generations of a German-American family from 1909 until very nearly the present. I was most taken with the amazing transition from descriptive narrative and dialogue into the unspoken thoughts of the character, rev...more
This is a good long read. It covers the lives of 5 generations of the Blau family, whose patriarch, Stefan Blau, immigrated from Germany in 1894. One of the main characters is actually the gargantuan (for that time) apartment house built by Stefan, and what it comes to mean for his granddaughter Emma. It ends in 1990. Emma becomes obsessed with the house. Will she break the obsession before it ruins her? Hegi writes in a flowing, warm style. Very enjoyable.
Blah. I had high hopes as I loved "Stones from the River" but was left disappointed. The plot was of a grand family owned apartment house - The Wasserburg - its eventual decay and how it tears the family apart. It was a downward spiral that was reflected in the downward spiral of my interest. Cared less about the 2nd generation than the 1st, less again of the 3rd generation and not at all of the 4th! Don't bother.
Hegi took a good story and added too many other story lines. Her family saga contained so many dyfunctions that I couldn't keep up - in a family with two grandparents, three children, and two grandchildren there were the following: one is a psychic, one is slightly autistic and later becomes homosexual, one is bulimic, on injures herself, one is a kleptomaniac. Add to the mix an illegitimate child and it was altogether too much for me.
Yet another fantastic book about some residents of Bergdorf, but the majority of this book takes place in the US and spans four generations. Hegi has such a wonderful way of describing places, thoughts, feelings. I felt the book started to falter toward the end, and I was rather disappointed in the end, but for those of you who have read Hegi's other books, you'll definitely enjoy this one. Just beware, it's not as good as Stones from the River, but what is?!
I listened to this book and loved every minute of it. It is an epic novel tracing generations of a German family as they settle and live in America. I loved the character development, the plot structure and the way the tale came to an end in the fourth generation of the family. I probably would have been less patient with the details if I had been reading it, but listening was great fun.
This is an amazing book. It may be my new favorite except that it was a little too long and drawn out at the end. It explores so many amazing themes including parenthood, adolescence, marriage, sibling relationships, childhood, grandparent relationship with grandchildren, immigration, women's friendships, community, etc. Ursula Hegi really knows how to make her characters become real people.
This book landed on my to-read list because I have a particular affinity for books that include a house as a character. The Vision of Emma Blau certainly hits the mark with the Wasserburg taking center stage. While I enjoyed the detailed descriptions of this fascinating place and the people involved with it, my appreciation for this book ends there.
While Hegi's writing is rich and emotional, this book has an overall feeling of melancholy. The first portion of the book was enhanced by some light...more
While Hegi's writing is rich and emotional, this book has an overall feeling of melancholy. The first portion of the book was enhanced by some light...more
I recall LOVING Stones from the River. Was thus somewhat disappointed with this one. I mean, it's okay, but not really all that compelling. Not sure why we're supposed to care about this family and its cast of characters. It DOES include some passages about crossing cultures and misunderstandings, etc. But, if that's what one's looking for, there are many betters sources.
Though I have enjoyed the story of this German family in her other works, I somehow lost interest as the generations grew. The father comes to America at an early age and fulfills his dreams of a wonderful place to live. There are moments of magically healing that disappear as the story goes on. The characters come alive but just didn't grab me this time.
I've always been taken with Hegi's novels so it was a treat to find this one in a used book store. The beginning was slow for me but one third into it - I was hooked and stayed up late to read each night. This would be a wonderful book to take on vacation or on a trip when you wanted to read something with substance.
Enjoyed this book. The characters are complex and interesting. It was especially interesting to read about how the German characters in the book were treated during WWII by the residents of the New Hampshire town most of the the novel takes place and also what it was like trying to fit in as a German immigrant.
Traces 3 generations of a German immigrant family in New England, from 1894 to 1990. Given the subject & the author (who wrote Stones from the River, which I liked a lot), I expected to like it. But it's surprisingly boring. None of the characters are very interesting, & we don't spend much time with any of them.
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Ursula Hegi is the author of Sacred Time, Hotel of the Saints, The Vision of Emma Blau, Tearing the Silence, Salt Dancers, Stones from the River, Floating in My Mother's Palm, Unearned Pleasures and Other Stories, Intrusions, and Trudi & Pia. She is the recipient of more than thirty grants and awards.
More about Ursula Hegi...
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