Book Review: The Emigrants, by W.G. Sebald (1992; transl. M. Hulse, 1996)
This book was recommended reading by a contributor to the podcast Talking Politics (I think), and (I think) the lady who recommended it stated that only towards the end of the book does it become clear what overarching point the author is trying to make. Well, my intellect would certainly not suffice for a political podcast and, alas, I didn’t find that the close of the book particularly clarified anything. However, I did very much enjoy reading The Emigrants , I would recommend it as highly as it was recommended to me, and the various things I think (I think) about it are outlined below… Firstly, is the prose, the style of writing, and the slightly distracted thread of the narrative. It is akin to a cloud, something you can admire but cannot grasp, with a true form one can only guess at. The drift of the various stories told in the book are undoubtedly linked by a certain melancholy. Or perhaps the butterfly catchers that feature sporadically through the book represe...