Box: Tales from the Darkroom - Softcover

Gunter Grass

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0099539756 ISBN 13: 9780099539759

Publisher: Vintage Books, 2011

Synopsis

In this delightful sequel to Peeling the Onion, Gunter Grass writes in the voices of his eight children as they record memories of their childhoods, of growing up, of their father, who was always at work on a new book, always at the margins of their lives. Memories contradictory, critical, loving, accusatory - they piece together an intimate picture of this most public of men. To say nothing of Marie, Grass's assistant, a family friend of many years, perhaps even a lover, whose snapshots taken with an old-fashioned Agfa box camera provide the author with ideas for his work. But her images offer much more. They reveal a truth beyond the ordinary detail of life, depict the future, tell what might have been, grant the wishes in visual form of those photographed. The children speculate on the nature of this magic: was the enchanted camera a source of inspiration for their father? Did it represent the power of art itself? Was it the eye of God? Winner of the Nobel Prize for Literature.

About this title

Book Description

HMH hardcover 2010
Previous ISBN: 978-0-547-24503-5

From the Back Cover

It is impossible not to be impressed by [Grass s] inexhaustible desire to experiment with the novel and by the many good stories and passages of exquisite writing in The Box. Charles Simic, New York Review of Books
In this inspired and daring work of fiction, Gunter Grass writes in the voices of his eight children as they record memories of their childhoods, of growing up, and especially of their father, who was always at work on a new book, always at the margins of their lives. Memories contradictory, happy, loving, accusatory they piece together an intimate picture of this most public of men. To say nothing of Marie, a photographer and family friend of many years, perhaps even a lover, whose snapshots taken with an old-fashioned Agfa box camera provide the author with ideas for his work. But her images offer much more than simple replication. They reveal a truth beyond ordinary life, depict the future, tell what might have been, grant the wishes of those photographed. The children speculate on the nature of this magic: Was the enchanted camera a source of inspiration for their father? Did it represent the power of art itself? Was it the eye of God? An audacious literary experiment, The Box is Grass at his best.
GUNTER GRASS was born in Danzig, Germany, in 1927. He is the widely acclaimed author of numerous books, including The Tin Drum, My Century, Crabwalk, and Peeling the Onion. He was awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1999.
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Edition details

• Publisher: Vintage Books
• Publication date: 2011
• ISBN 10: 0099539756
• ISBN 13: 9780099539759
• Binding: Paperback
• Language: English
• Number of pages: 207