Vienna Tales

Product Description

Situated on the cusp of West & East, between the foothills of the Alps & the mighty ` Blue Danube`, Vienna has long presented authors with a wealth of material for stories that entertain & intrigue. The city`s famous quality of life & rich variety of cultural offerings is apparent here at every turn, but so too is its darker side, whether it be the Viennese obsession with death & decay or the dramatic, tragic events of its twentieth-century history. In stories from the early to mid-nineteenth century in particular, the city stands for wine, women & song, for a laid-back
-
- perhaps somewhat lax?-
- outlook on life that is invariably linked to its location as German culture`s southernmost centre. In more recent tales, the theme of the good life & of Vienna`s beauty continues, but there are very few authors who do not dwell on elements of darkness or melancholy. Indeed, from the mid-twentieth century onward, death itself seems to have become literature`s preferred guide to the city. The collection concentrates on stories set at the city`s margins. The tales are arranged geographically rather than chronologically, around & through the city from west to east & back again. We begin & end with Arthur Schnitzler & Joseph Roth, two authors already indelibly associated with Vienna, but represented here by little-known gems, translated for the first time. Other authors include stars of Vienna`s nineteenth century feuilleton journalism
- Heinrich Laube, Ferdinand Kurnberger, Adalbert Stifter
- but also the most recent generation of Viennese writers, Doron Rabinovici, Eva Menasse, Dimitre Dinev, with tales as yet unknown in English.