A Love Letter in Cuneiform

Nonfiction, History, Eastern Europe, Fiction & Literature, Historical, Literary
Cover of the book A Love Letter in Cuneiform by Tomáš Zmeškal, Yale University Press
View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart
Author: Tomáš Zmeškal ISBN: 9780300188592
Publisher: Yale University Press Publication: March 21, 2016
Imprint: Yale University Press Language: English
Author: Tomáš Zmeškal
ISBN: 9780300188592
Publisher: Yale University Press
Publication: March 21, 2016
Imprint: Yale University Press
Language: English
Set in Czechoslovakia between the 1940s and the 1990s, Tomáš Zmeškal’s stimulating novel focuses on one family’s tragic story of love and the unspoken. Josef meets his wife, Kveta, before the Second World War at a public lecture on Hittite culture. Kveta chooses to marry Josef over their mutual friend Hynek, but when her husband is later arrested and imprisoned for an unnamed crime, Kveta gives herself to Hynek in return for help and advice. The author explores the complexities of what is not spoken, what cannot be said, the repercussions of silence after an ordeal, the absurdity of forgotten pain, and what it is to be an outsider.
 
In Zmeškal’s tale, told not chronologically but rather as a mosaic of events, time progresses unevenly and unpredictably, as does one’s understanding. The saga belongs to a particular family, but it also exposes the larger, ongoing struggle of postcommunist Eastern Europe to come to terms with suffering when catharsis is denied. Reporting from a fresh, multicultural perspective, Zmeškal makes a welcome contribution to European literature in the twenty-first century.
View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart
Set in Czechoslovakia between the 1940s and the 1990s, Tomáš Zmeškal’s stimulating novel focuses on one family’s tragic story of love and the unspoken. Josef meets his wife, Kveta, before the Second World War at a public lecture on Hittite culture. Kveta chooses to marry Josef over their mutual friend Hynek, but when her husband is later arrested and imprisoned for an unnamed crime, Kveta gives herself to Hynek in return for help and advice. The author explores the complexities of what is not spoken, what cannot be said, the repercussions of silence after an ordeal, the absurdity of forgotten pain, and what it is to be an outsider.
 
In Zmeškal’s tale, told not chronologically but rather as a mosaic of events, time progresses unevenly and unpredictably, as does one’s understanding. The saga belongs to a particular family, but it also exposes the larger, ongoing struggle of postcommunist Eastern Europe to come to terms with suffering when catharsis is denied. Reporting from a fresh, multicultural perspective, Zmeškal makes a welcome contribution to European literature in the twenty-first century.

More books from Yale University Press

Cover of the book Treacherous Alliance: The Secret Dealings of Israel, Iran, and the United States by Tomáš Zmeškal
Cover of the book The Rise of Thomas Cromwell by Tomáš Zmeškal
Cover of the book Jerry Herman by Tomáš Zmeškal
Cover of the book Benjamin Franklin by Tomáš Zmeškal
Cover of the book Dazzled and Deceived by Tomáš Zmeškal
Cover of the book Introduction to Metaphysics by Tomáš Zmeškal
Cover of the book Logic of Miracles by Tomáš Zmeškal
Cover of the book When London Was Capital of America by Tomáš Zmeškal
Cover of the book The Grand Strategy of Classical Sparta by Tomáš Zmeškal
Cover of the book The Master and His Emissary by Tomáš Zmeškal
Cover of the book Credit Between Cultures: Farmers, Financiers, and Misunderstanding in Africa by Tomáš Zmeškal
Cover of the book The Less You Know, The Better You Sleep by Tomáš Zmeškal
Cover of the book Subverting Exclusion: Transpacific Encounters with Race, Caste, and Borders, 1885-1928 by Tomáš Zmeškal
Cover of the book Hubris by Tomáš Zmeškal
Cover of the book The Birth of Christian History by Tomáš Zmeškal
We use our own "cookies" and third party cookies to improve services and to see statistical information. By using this website, you agree to our Privacy Policy