Many of us can probably remember some of the books we read in our childhood. We may have even read them over and over again, sometimes in their entirety from beginning to end, and sometimes only those passages that over time became our favorites. Then, as we became older and began reading more sophisticated texts, […]
Mehr
Later this year, Germany‘s Suhrkamp Verlag will publish a volume of Hermann Hesse‘s letters between 1947 and 1951 (see “Das Unerträgliche muß zu Wort kommen” at suhrkamp.de). In the years when letter writing was the primary form of long-distance communication, many writers developed enormous volumes of correspondence, and Hesse’s literary production of novels, stories, poems, […]
Mehr
When World War I broke out in the summer of 1914, Hermann Hesse, still a German citizen but living in Switzerland, registered himself with the German army. Although he was found unfit for combat duty, he was assigned to care for German prisoners of war. Unlike many of his contemporaries, including writers, who supported the […]
Mehr
In November 2020, hhesse.de had the opportunity to ask the Swabian author Kai Wieland a few questions. Our interview with the author of Zeit der Wildschweine follows. hhesse.de: Can you remember the first books you read or that were read to you? Wieland: Yes, there were classic children’s books like The Very Hungry Caterpillar and […]
Mehr
Among the dominant themes in the works of Hermann Hesse is that of self-discovery, or self-realization. Hermann Hesse’s life was partially characterized by competing forces that included on one hand the pious lifestyle and influences of his parents, the responsibilities that accompanied his marriages and children, and the demands of an often-hostile outside world, and, […]
Mehr
The small, Freiburg-based Verlag Karl Alber, which specializes in philosophy publications, released a novel earlier this year written by Maren Bohm, and the novel is titled “Hermann Hesses wundersame Geschichte”. Bohm is a former high school teacher and has previously written a children’s book and three novels. Bohm’s newest novel starts with a conceit: Bernd […]
MehrIn the years since Hermann Hesse’s death in 1962, a variety of prizes have been founded to promote or recognize work which furthers the understanding of Hermann Hesse’s writings or to recognize works of other authors generally. Following is an overview of several of these prizes and their most recent prizewinners. Hermann Hesse Literatur Prize […]
Mehr
Less than one hour after leaving Freiburg in southwestern Germany, our train arrived at the station in Basel, Switzerland. This was a moment I had long anticipated. I hailed a taxi outside of the train station, and once my luggage and I were inside the taxi, the taxi driver asked for a destination. “Hotel Krafft“, […]
Mehr