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Apocryphal Tales
The stories in this collection tackle great events and figures of history, myth, and literature in unexpected ways, questioning views on such basic concepts as justice, progress, wisdom, belief, and patriotism.
Paperback, 192 pages
Published
April 1st 1997
by Catbird Press
(first published 1945)
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This was an absolutely enjoyable read from beginning to end. Each of the stories is well paced and witty with only a couple on the didactic side. My favourites are “Times Aren't What They Used To Be” which imagines that technological progress came from human laziness, the reimagining of Hamlet, so that the famous soliloquy is about career choice, a revised Romeo and Juliet in which Juliet marries Paris and we witness her life about thirty years later, the miracle of the five loaves told from the...more
Y bueno. De la nada aparece este pequeño libro, arrumbado en la cima de uno de los múltiples alteros que tiene papá en su habitación.
¿Cuánto tiempo llevaba ahí? Ni idea. Me llamó la atención el nombre del autor, esas consonantes con signos encima de ellas me han dejado buen sabor de boca.
Después el título retador. El formato de bolsillo y una edición de esas lindas, bonitas, de buen papel y buena impresión.
Luego la contraportada que menciona algo del autor y su obra, una de ellas titulada R.U.R....more
¿Cuánto tiempo llevaba ahí? Ni idea. Me llamó la atención el nombre del autor, esas consonantes con signos encima de ellas me han dejado buen sabor de boca.
Después el título retador. El formato de bolsillo y una edición de esas lindas, bonitas, de buen papel y buena impresión.
Luego la contraportada que menciona algo del autor y su obra, una de ellas titulada R.U.R....more
Kdo se chce pustit do čtení tohoto díla, musí alespoň povrchově znát dějiny, Bibli i řeckou mytologii, aby se mu nestalo, jako mně, že není schopen přijít na to, čím se apokryf zabývá, co jsou fakta a co výmysl a kde vůbec je ten humor. :)
Znovu a znovu mě překvapuje, jak dokážou knihy od tohoto úžasného českého spisovatele naprosto uchvátit a vtáhnout do děje - člověk má až pocit, že to bylo napsáno v posledních pár letech, protože tohle je dílo, které prostě muselo uchvacovat čtenáře už v minul...more
Znovu a znovu mě překvapuje, jak dokážou knihy od tohoto úžasného českého spisovatele naprosto uchvátit a vtáhnout do děje - člověk má až pocit, že to bylo napsáno v posledních pár letech, protože tohle je dílo, které prostě muselo uchvacovat čtenáře už v minul...more
Small sketches based on famous people or fictional characters, retold. I liked the Greek stuff; I loved the Shakespeare; I was completely confused by the Bible material (no frame of reference). The author clearly has a great mind, but the pieces are limited vignettes. I want to try a novel next.
quote:
"Cleverness is usually cruel, malicious and selfish; it seeks a weakness in its neighbor and exploits it for its own gain; it leads to success. [...:] Reason is frequently cruel to man, but it is true to its intentions; it seeks to profit everyone ..."
- pg.35 Agathon, or Concerning Wisdom
"Cleverness is usually cruel, malicious and selfish; it seeks a weakness in its neighbor and exploits it for its own gain; it leads to success. [...:] Reason is frequently cruel to man, but it is true to its intentions; it seeks to profit everyone ..."
- pg.35 Agathon, or Concerning Wisdom
very interesting little book, taking tales from mythology and ancient literature and retelling them through a symbolic filter that makes them all into commentary on Czech politics and society. a great operational concept, and one that really pays off. the translation i read was fairly poor, but the stories were great.
Una buena colección de relatos escritos con maestría y fina ironía que además normaliza algunos de los grandes clásicos.
May 18, 2013
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Karel Čapek is one of the the most influential Czech writers of the 20th century. He wrote with intelligence and humour on a wide variety of subjects. His works are known for their interesting and precise descriptions of reality, and Čapek is renowned for his excellent work with the Czech language. His play R.U.R. (Rossum's Universal Robots) first popularized the word "robot".
More about Karel Čapek...
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Oct 05, 2011 06:57am