Eddie's review
The Voice Imitator by Thomas Bernhard
When I read some of Bernhard's books quite a few years ago I wasn't even aware that he had written anything like this - very short "stories", some almost like newspaper squibs (like Tosh mentions), but also like mysterious dark parables. In reading his novels you could get the impression that Bernhard's strength lies in his almost primal incantantory rhythms and repetitions and headlong powerful rush of words, but this book, by being almost like strobe-lit moments or still snapshots of his prose, reveals the sophisticated conceptual power behind his works, and it also makes it easier to see how his twisted phrasing and punctuation help to build up the overall effect of his novels. It's also easy to read in this book on the sly while at work. Thanks for helping me make it through a few days Herr Bernhard!
