Many works, including Siddhartha (1922) and Steppenwolf (1927), of German-born Swiss writer Hermann Hesse concern the struggle of the individual to find wholeness and meaning in life; he won the Nobel Prize for literature in 1946.
Other best-known works of this poet, novelist, and painter include The Glass Bead Game, which, also known as Magister Ludi, explore a search of an individual for spirituality outside society.
In his time, Hesse was a popular and influential author in the German-speaking world; worldwide fame only came later. Young Germans desiring a different and more "natural" way of life at the time of great economic and technological progress in the country, received enthusiastically Peter Camenzind, first great novel of Hesse.
Throughout Germany, people named many schools. In 1964, people founded the Calwer Hermann-Hesse-Preis, awarded biennially, alternately to a German-language literary journal or to the translator of work of Hesse to a foreign language. The city of Karlsruhe, Germany, also associates a Hermann Hesse prize.
Having reread not too long ago and I find it inescapable that I was far more powerfully moved by this collection of short stories. For me the short stories are just more condensed in Hesse's case, a kind of refined essence, the health giving brandy in comparison to the wine of the novels. Perhaps it is always the case that the short story is the best measure of a writer's skill, there nothing can be hidden. I think the tone and interests are much of a muchness with Hesse's novels but somehow more strange (indeed as the title story promises) and as a result more haunting.
In the title story a person visits another world in a dream. This other world is alien, one of violence and warfare much like our own and the dreamer, who comes from a peaceful planet is perceived as a kind of angel and so eventually escapes back to their own place.
In another story a baby is given the magical blessing that everybody will always love him, which in the way of magical blessings generally turns out extremely badly until as an adult the man wishes only for it's opposite - to love everybody.
In another a young man gets to become a mountain (a tough job and it takes him a while to settle into it) and looms over his home town.
All stories are I suppose, strange news and they come from as distant and strange a place as another star, another person.
I liked all of these stories the most the first time that I read them, and less each subsequent time. Now I feel a critical edge developing, I notice there are few women in these stories and philosophical or spiritually they are not the equal of the male characters who are the ones capable of interior development. And after a couple of times the stories are thin, there is nothing new to discover in them, it is funny how much they remain on the surface when the content is focused often on internal striving and inner meaning, but possibly this is a warning that Hesse was himself striving for something that he felt that he was not achieving in Art or in life?
Each time I read a Hesse book I'm reminded of why I considered him my favorite writer when I was in college. His writing is simply magnificent. This collection of short stories is vintage Hesse. The stories have an almost surreal fairy tale feel to them and no one can express the passing of time more beautifully than Hesse.
It says something about the power of Hesse's writing that more than one of these stories moved me despite my not being at all in the mood for anything even minimally impactful. Certain traits of his writing -- the earnestness, the melancholy, the perpetual search for the sublime -- never cease to awe me, no matter how reluctant I am to be impressed. He's a fiction writer who, should you give yourself over to him, will get you closer to the secrets of existence than any other storyteller. And as seen here, that ability was alive and well even in his formative days.
"Augustus" is one of the stronger entries that sets the template for many of the stories here: a young man, a wise angel/god/master, and learning the secrets of happiness. "The Poet," "Flute Dream" and "The Hard Passage" were lesser variations on this theme and very similar to each other. The last was the best of these, with a powerful, haunting ending. The titular "Strange News" was perhaps the most distinct story but a little too earnest for my taste, and also the least focused.
The stars of the collection are the last two stories. "Faldum" is a glorious, depressing tale of a man who turns into a mountain -- it does more to impress upon one the pointlessness of human existence than any fiction I've ever read. The way Hesse zooms out from the human to the earth perspective is both dizzying and electrifying.
"Iris" is the beautiful, tragic story of a man who sacrifices everything in the hunt for childish joy and innocence. It's unclear to me if Hesse acknowledges the impossibility of this search; he either denies the legitimacy of this cynicism or he accepts it while wishing it weren't so. Either way, attentive readers are left with a repudiation of their shallow existence, and possibly even a faint twinge of desire for Hesse's pure life of contemplation, no matter how unrealistic it may seem.
I've said it before and I'll say it again: Hesse is not a perfect writer, and his philosophy is similarly flawed. But I love him for his never-ending quest to solve existence, and his admirable bravery in facing the question head on. It's a special talent that could make such a spiritual odyssey so incredibly captivating on the page.
"喙€喔炧弗喔囙競喔ム父喙堗涪喙冟笝喔澿副喔�" 喔福喔粪腑 Strange News from another Star 喔`抚喔∴箑喔`阜喙堗腑喔囙釜喔编箟喔� 喙� 喙€喔`阜喙堗腑喔囙競喔竾喙€喔腑喔`箤喔∴覆喔權笝喙� 喙€喔釜喙€喔� 喙佮笡喔ム箓喔斷涪 喔笖喙冟釜 喙傕笖喔⑧釜喔權笧.喔福喙夃覆喔囙釜喔`福喔勦箤喔氞父喙娻竸
-喔椸覆喔囙弗喔赤笟喔侧竵 (The Hard Passage) 喙€喔`阜喙堗腑喔囙笝喔掂箟喙€喔`覆喔о箞喔侧箑喔嬥腑喔`箤喙€喔`傅喔⑧弗 喔箞喔侧笝喔堗笟喙佮弗喙夃抚喙勦浮喙堗竸喙堗腑喔⑧箑喔傕箟喔侧箖喔堗箑喔椸箞喔侧箘喔� 喔副喔嵿弗喔编竵喔┼笓喙屶箑喔⑧腑喔班竸喙堗赴 喔勦复喔斷抚喙堗覆喙佮笗喙堗弗喔班竸喔權腑喙堗覆喔權竸喔囙笗喔掂竸喔о覆喔∴箘喔涏箘喔斷箟喔弗喔侧涪喙佮笟喔� 喔箞喔о笝喔曕副喔о箑喔`覆喙€喔傕箟喔侧箖喔堗抚喙堗覆喙€喔`阜喙堗腑喔囙笝喔掂箟喙€喔涏箛喔權竵喔侧福喔曕箞喔福喔竾喔佮副喔氞涪喔∴笐喔灌笗喙佮弗喔班箑喔斷复喔權笚喔侧竾喙勦笡喔腹喙堗竸喔о覆喔∴笗喔侧涪 (喔∴副喙夃竾喔勦赴?)
-喔ム赋喔斷副喔氞笣喔编笝 (A Dream Sequence) 喙€喔`阜喙堗腑喔囙笝喔掂箟喙€喔涏复喔斷浮喔侧箖喔箟喙€喔傕箟喔侧箖喔堗箑喔涏箛喔權腑喔⑧箞喔侧竾喔笝喔多箞喔� 喙佮笗喙堗箑喔斷复喔權箘喔涏竸喔權弗喔班笚喔脆辅喔ム赴喔椸覆喔� 喔∴傅喔勦抚喔侧浮喔弗喔竵喔ム箞喔箖喔箟喔副喔氞釜喔� 喙勦浮喙堗箒喔權箞喙冟笀喔о箞喔侧箑喔椸竸喔權复喔勦竵喔侧福喙€喔傕傅喔⑧笝喙佮笟喔氞笝喔掂箟喙€喔`傅喔⑧竵喔赴喙勦福 喔箞喔侧笝喙€喔炧弗喔脆笝喙� 喙勦笖喙夃箑喔炧福喔侧赴喔涏福喔班斧喔ム覆喔斷笖喔掂竸喙堗赴
喔�.喔�. 喙€喔`覆喔炧付喙堗竾喙€喔箛喔權箑喔ム箞喔� Strange News from Another Star 喔炧复喔∴笧喙屶箖喔浮喙�(喔∴傅.喔�. 61) 喙佮笟喔氞笡喔佮箒喔傕箛喔� 喙傕笖喔⑧箑喔勦弗喙囙笖喙勦笚喔⑧竸喙堗赴 喙佮笡喔ム箓喔斷涪喔覆喔堗覆喔`涪喙屶釜喔斷箖喔笚喙堗覆喔權箑喔斷复喔∴笀喙夃覆 :-)
喔傕箞喔侧抚喔涏福喔班斧喔ム覆喔斷笀喔侧竵喔曕箞喔侧竾喔斷覆喔� (Strange News from Another Star): 喔溹浮喔娻腑喔氞笟喔椸釜喔權笚喔權覆喔傕腑喔� 喔娻覆喔⑧斧喔權父喙堗浮喔堗覆喔佮笖喔侧抚喔椸傅喙堗笢喔灌箟喔勦笝喙勦浮喙堗竵喔ム副喔о笗喔侧涪喙佮弗喔班箘喔∴箞喔佮弗喙夃覆喔嗋箞喔侧竵喔编笝 喔佮副喔氞笧喔`赴喔`覆喔娻覆喔溹腹喙夃竵喙堗腑喔竾喔勦福喔侧浮喔氞笝喔斷覆喔о腑喔掂竵喔斷抚喔�
喔佮抚喔� (The Poet): 喔赴喔椸箟喔笝喔曕副喔� 喙€喔釜喙€喔� 喔嬥付喙堗竾 "喔曕箟喔竾喔佮覆喔`箑喔涏箛喔權竵喔о傅 喔福喔粪腑喙勦浮喙堗竵喙囙箘喔∴箞喔涪喔侧竵喙€喔涏箛喔權腑喔班箘喔`笚喔编箟喔囙笝喔编箟喔�" 喔溹浮喔箞喔侧笝喙€喔炧弗喔脆笝喙� 喙佮笗喙堗竸喔權笚喔掂箞喔涪喔侧竵喙€喔涏箛喔權竵喔о傅喔箞喔侧笝喙佮弗喙夃抚喔權箞喔侧笀喔班箘喔斷箟喔赴喙勦福喔∴覆喔佮竵喔о箞喔�
喔椸覆喔囙弗喔赤笟喔侧竵 (The Hard Passage): 喔娻覆喔⑧笢喔灌箟喙€喔ム阜喔竵喔椸傅喙堗笀喔班笗喔侧浮喔∴副喔勦竸喔膏箑喔椸辅喔佮箤喙勦笡喔曕覆喔∴箑喔箟喔權笚喔侧竾喔椸傅喙堗涪喔侧竵喔ム赋喔氞覆喔佮箒喔∴箟喔堗赴喔ム副喔囙箑喔ム腑喔⑧腹喙堗笟喙夃覆喔� 喔溹浮喔о箞喔侧浮喔编竸喔勦父喙€喔椸辅喔佮箤喔勦阜喔笗喔编抚喔曕笝喔傅喔佮笖喙夃覆喔權競喔竾喙€喔傕覆
喔ム赋喔斷副喔氞笣喔编笝 (A Dream Sequence): 喔犩覆喔炧竸喔о覆喔∴笣喔编笝喔椸傅喙堗涪喔膏箞喔囙箑喔涪喔脆竾 喔箞喔侧笝喙佮弗喙夃抚喔`腹喙夃釜喔多竵喔付喔斷腑喔编笖 喔∴覆喔勦弗喔掂箞喔勦弗喔侧涪喔曕腑喔權笚喙夃覆喔⑧箚 喔溹浮喔⑧副喔囙笗喔掂竸喔о覆喔∴箘喔∴箞喙勦笖喙�
Hermann Hesse has been my favorite author since high school, but this is the first opportunity I've had to read "Strange News from Another Star" -- which is essentially a collection of modern fairy tales. They are amazingly lyrical, timeless, magical, and spiritual -- a testament to Hesse's skill as a humanistic philosopher and gifted writer (as well as a gift from an outstanding translator!).