Franz Kafka, George Steiner, Willa Muir, Breon Mitchell, Edwin Muir - Trial: A New Translation Based on the Restored Text

Pros: Deals with the claustrophobic intensity of the law; great atmosphere
Cons: unsympathetic main character; poor handling of female characters

On his thirtieth birthday, Joseph K wakes up to find that two men are waiting for him in the living room, and that he is under arrest. They won't tell him why he is under arrest, what he has done, under what authority he is being charged, or how to do ...

Pros: A novel with many riddles and dark corners.
Cons: None that I'm aware of.

What is the story? K. is "arrested", "sentenced" and put to "death". I'm not spoiling anything because this novel is not really a story but a dreamlike description of an ordeal. What happens in the end is more or less irrelevant except for one thing. The ...

Pros: story, plot, characters, themes, ideas, style
Cons: Can be dense

While some would say this book is about the ultimate struggle between man and the general confusion of the world I think this goes much deeper. Written in a time of war and strife (1914-15) I think that this book was more personal than esoteric. We...

Pros: Magnificently written. One of the best satires ever written. Kafka has created one of the best examples of an anti-hero over written.
Cons: None, it is written with skill and the plot flows perfectly.

Franz Kafka has been called the greatest satirist outside of the English language, and he might very well be. Even counting the English language Kafka is definitely one of the best satirists ever, and The Trial is a masterpiece.

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Pros: Witty, thought provoking, can be read on multiple levels
Cons: unfinished work. some meaning is lost in translation

Franz Kafka's works can be read in a number of ways. There is the over laying level that meets you on the face of the page. This world is strange and at times humorous. Things seem to happen for no reason or in the wrong place or are enacted by the...

Pros: Powerful, evocative book
Cons: Incomplete (although the book, as is, has no gaping plot holes)

The Trial is a very unsettling book because it bridges the gap between two worlds. The first several chapters seem to be in the world of Orwell, particularly 1984: Joseph K. has no idea what he has done wrong, he is never told the charges...

Pros: Great story, thought provoking
Cons: a little slow

For those that don't know of Kafka's writing, he fits somewhere around Camus and Orwell. The trial is a simple story of a man, portrayed as completely innocent, on trial for a crime he has no knowledge of at all. The story is quite isolationist, and I...

Pros: If you are an admirer of Kafka, Mitchell etc., you will enjoy this book.
Cons: a good book

Kafka, a genius of literaure, is among my favorite authors. This book includes great information and the new translation based on restored text is a gem for kafka lovers.

Breon Mitchell - another favorite, is also featured in this book.

REVIEW:

If you are a fan of any of the people in this book then you are in for a lovely surprise. Restored text adds insight into these famous people and it is done in a lovely manner.

4 out of 5