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Hunters in the Snow
Vienna in the early 20th century was, in the words of our protagonist and narrator, a soulless, syphilitic whore of a city; a turbulent and bubbling melting pot of races, creeds and politics, rapidly expanding as it strained to contain the ever-increasing multitudes. In such places the nightmare moments of modern history are conceived. This novel is a fictionalised account of those who were to change the very collective psyche of mankind. It is a vivid and poignant portrayal of the sometimes thin dividing line between becoming good or evil.
D.M. Thomas is a British novelist and poet, born and living in Cornwall. His novel The White Hotel was an international bestseller and shortlisted for the Booker Prize. It is rightly considered a modern classic, translated into more than 30 languages. John Updike said of the book: ‘Astonishing … A forthright sensuality mixed with a fine historical feeling for the nightmare moments in modern history, a dreamlike fluidity and quickness’; the statement could equally be applied to Hunters in the Snow.
D.M. Thomas is a British novelist and poet, born and living in Cornwall. His novel The White Hotel was an international bestseller and shortlisted for the Booker Prize. It is rightly considered a modern classic, translated into more than 30 languages. John Updike said of the book: ‘Astonishing … A forthright sensuality mixed with a fine historical feeling for the nightmare moments in modern history, a dreamlike fluidity and quickness’; the statement could equally be applied to Hunters in the Snow.
160 pages, Paperback
First published September 15, 2014
About the author
D.M. Thomas
86 books85 followersD.M. Thomas was born in Cornwall in 1935. After reading English at New College, Oxford, he became a teacher and was Head of the English Department at Hereford College of Education until he became a full-time writer. His first novel The Flute-Player won the Gollancz Pan/Picador Fantasy Competition. He is also known for his collections of verse and his translation from the Russian poet Anna Akhmatova.
He was awarded the Los Angeles Fiction prize for his novel The White Hotel, an international bestseller, translated into 30 languages; a Cholmondeley award for poetry; and the Orwell Prize for his biography of Alexander Solzhenitsyn. He lives in his native Cornwall, England.
He was awarded the Los Angeles Fiction prize for his novel The White Hotel, an international bestseller, translated into 30 languages; a Cholmondeley award for poetry; and the Orwell Prize for his biography of Alexander Solzhenitsyn. He lives in his native Cornwall, England.
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
June 20, 2020
It’s a shame DM Thomas has only published 2 novels in the last 20-odd years, because he’s got a unique and compelling voice. His subject matter is always audacious and provocative and this is no exception.
His technique, ever since The White Hotel, has been to examine and explore his characters psyches and unconscious motivations in the light of Freudian psychoanalysis, sometimes playfully, but always in an insightful and entertaining way, and here we have Freud himself involved in the melting pot of Vienna in 1912. Freud is not the narrator but it would be a spoiler to reveal who is.
It’s not quite as spectacular an achievement as the White Hotel, the Russian Quintet or some of his other works (check out Eating Pavlova for an even better example of analysing Freud himself), but it’s a great read and a neglected gem.
His technique, ever since The White Hotel, has been to examine and explore his characters psyches and unconscious motivations in the light of Freudian psychoanalysis, sometimes playfully, but always in an insightful and entertaining way, and here we have Freud himself involved in the melting pot of Vienna in 1912. Freud is not the narrator but it would be a spoiler to reveal who is.
It’s not quite as spectacular an achievement as the White Hotel, the Russian Quintet or some of his other works (check out Eating Pavlova for an even better example of analysing Freud himself), but it’s a great read and a neglected gem.
May 18, 2021
I have been a fan of this somewhat obscure author for a long time. This is one of his better books, to be sure. The book is realistic, accurate, interesting and fascinating. Book has an interesting narrator, Hitler. Also I like the art work on the cover. A very enjoyable book but, will probably not read it a second time.
May 18, 2021
I've been a fan of D.M. Thomas for a long time. This is one of his better books, for sure. An unusual narrator, Hitler. The book is believable, realistic, interesting and accurate. An excellent book for sure but, I will probably not read it a second time. Bravo to D.M. Thomas!
November 24, 2017
Fascinating storyline, told with inimitable flair and strangeness.
March 31, 2020
this lad's a ledge
September 29, 2016
This is not a book that I 'liked' in any sense. Nor is it an important book in any sense. I struggled with how to rate it and in the end decided on a gentlereader's '3' as I at least felt compelled to finish it.
D.M. Thomas has written a book, The White Hotel, once short-listed for the Booker Prize. Being a fan of well-written fiction set in Vienna I was hoping to encounter Booker Prize-worthy literature here; but no. What I did find was an oddly compelling tale of what the interactions may have been like has Sigmund Freud and his youngest daughter, Anna, met and befriended a young, starving Adolf Hitler in the run up to WWI. I almost could not get past the nausea I felt during the first few pages as I realized this book is narrated by Hitler himself. And while the subject could do with a much better written, more complete piece of literature along the lines of Bruce Duffy's The World As I Found It, Thomas did provide his narrator with opportunities to reveal his tormented psyche through his thoughts, words and actions. Particularly interesting is the author's look in both Freuds, especially young Anna and her attempts at psychoanalyzing Hitler.
Hitler's self-profess love of the 'pure and innocent' and abhorrence for that 'great whore, Vienna' are such a striking contrast to his twisted psyche, especially in his relationship with Anna Freud. And it is in just such an examination of Hitler's (and Anna's) sexual psyches that my normally strong lack of prudery failed me. Though there are no sex scenes per se I was left feeling dirty at the tales end. I suspect that was intended.
I did learn two interesting facts that I had not previous encountered. What is commonly called a swastika is in fact actually a 'hakenkreuz.' The German name comes from the way the arms of the cross (German: kreuz) were crooked, or at an angle (German: haken). A Mr. Hakenkreuz makes an appearance here in a dream by Hitler. The other is that, due to illegitimacies in the family, Hitler's last name could just as easily have been Schicklgruber. Ponder the possibility of how different world history may have been if the German people had to shout "Heil Schicklgruber!" with raised hands.
D.M. Thomas has written a book, The White Hotel, once short-listed for the Booker Prize. Being a fan of well-written fiction set in Vienna I was hoping to encounter Booker Prize-worthy literature here; but no. What I did find was an oddly compelling tale of what the interactions may have been like has Sigmund Freud and his youngest daughter, Anna, met and befriended a young, starving Adolf Hitler in the run up to WWI. I almost could not get past the nausea I felt during the first few pages as I realized this book is narrated by Hitler himself. And while the subject could do with a much better written, more complete piece of literature along the lines of Bruce Duffy's The World As I Found It, Thomas did provide his narrator with opportunities to reveal his tormented psyche through his thoughts, words and actions. Particularly interesting is the author's look in both Freuds, especially young Anna and her attempts at psychoanalyzing Hitler.
Hitler's self-profess love of the 'pure and innocent' and abhorrence for that 'great whore, Vienna' are such a striking contrast to his twisted psyche, especially in his relationship with Anna Freud. And it is in just such an examination of Hitler's (and Anna's) sexual psyches that my normally strong lack of prudery failed me. Though there are no sex scenes per se I was left feeling dirty at the tales end. I suspect that was intended.
I did learn two interesting facts that I had not previous encountered. What is commonly called a swastika is in fact actually a 'hakenkreuz.' The German name comes from the way the arms of the cross (German: kreuz) were crooked, or at an angle (German: haken). A Mr. Hakenkreuz makes an appearance here in a dream by Hitler. The other is that, due to illegitimacies in the family, Hitler's last name could just as easily have been Schicklgruber. Ponder the possibility of how different world history may have been if the German people had to shout "Heil Schicklgruber!" with raised hands.
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews