In a scene written with masterly control and a build up of tension we see the power of the showman, the hysterical pressure to participate on the part of the crowd and the resistance of the sceptical Arthur who is nevertheless cajoled onto the stage. The novel starts with Arthur taking all three sons as young teenagers to see a hypnotist, The Great Lindemann. As a father he interacts with all three sons dutifully but doesn’t seem overly interested in them or indeed in shouldering responsibilities at all. He is a writer of novels which never get published: the family live off the salary of the twins’ mother, who is an ophthalmologist. Arthur lives with the twins’ mother, having had a relationship with Martin’s mother too. The novel is about a middle aged man called Arthur and his three sons, Martin, Iwan and Eric, the latter two being twins.
I read it in German so cannot comment on the translation but am sure, given the quality of literature which reaches both the longlist and shortlist, that the translation has done a great job of bringing this book to English speaking audiences.
This pacey novel by Daniel Kehlmann has reached the shortlist of the Independent Foreign Fiction Prize which awards both writers and their translators.
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