László Krasznahorkai: Herscht 07769 (Herscht 07769)

The latest addition to my website isLászló Krasznahorkai‘s Herscht 07769 (Herscht 07769). The novel is set in a small town in Eastern Germany, post-Communism . Our hero is a gentle giant, Florian Herscht, somewhat simple, but well-liked by everyone as he is always willing to help. He works for a cleaner. His boss is a neo-Nazi but though no Nazi himself, Florian is devoted to him as he gave him a job and a flat. The Boss (he is given no name) reveres J S Bach as the epitome of Germanness. Bach’s family are from the region. When a graffiti artist desecrates buildings associated with Bach, the Boss is furious. Meanwhile Florian has been attending a course on particle physics and assumes the planet faces imminent destruction and writes letters to Chancellor Angela Merkel on the matter. As we might expect from Krasznahorkai things take a darker turn when there are explosions and seemingly random killings. As always this is a superb novel from Krasznahorkai which delves into the darker side of the human soul.

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