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Mercedes-Benz

Mercedes-Benz

by Antonia Lloyd - Jones (Translator), PawelHuelle (Author)

  • Used

    Paperback 2005

    $3.34
Synopsis

SHORTLISTED FOR THE INDEPENDENT FOREIGN FICTION PRIZE In the Polish city of Gdansk, our narrator Pawel tells of the driving lessons he took in the early 1990s, shortly after the end of communism. As he struggled with the tiny Fiat?s gearbox, causing chaos while stalled at a crossroads, Pawel entertained his instructor ? the lovely Miss Ciwle ? with stories of his grandparents? and parents? lives. Through these tender stories we hear of one family?s obsession with classic cars ? in particular Mercedes-Benz ? the outings, the races, the crashes and the inevitable repairs. Based on fact and illustrated with personal photographs, these tales contrast the golden era of Poland?s pre-war independence with the dismal communist years, and with the uncertain new chapter in the country?s history that had only just begun when Pawel was learning to drive. With elegant brilliance, Huelle creates a touching portrait of three generations amid life-changing historical events.

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More Information

Format: Paperback
 Pages: 192
 Publisher: Serpent's Tail
Published: 30 Aug 2005
ISBN 10: 1852428694
ISBN 13: 9781852428693

Media Reviews
Droll, offbeat, both touching and farcical * Independent *
Huelle writes in such an engaging, chatty style that you hardly notice the fraught circumstances underlying every tale * Guardian *
Cultish, electrifying memoir * Independent on Sunday *
Quirky, thoughtful and often poetic, it opens a subjective and fascinating window on to the recent past * The Times *
An exhilarating, liberating, brief and delightful novel with a story at every turning... Antonia Lloyd-Jones's translation sustains the mischief and verve of the original... Huelle's wit and his subtle gift for measuring absurdity stand comparison with Hrabal or any of the other great central European ironists -- Marek Kohn * New Statesman *
Highly recommended. It's truly wonderful what this writer from Gdansk has managed to fit into such a tiny car * Focus *
Strictly enclosed by cars and roads, this city-road-movie explores the history of a whole family and era. Wonderful. As Brecht said, the simplest things are the most difficult to create * Bookmarket *
Beautifully packaged little paperback...the narration is full of pathos and has clearly been translated into English with lots of TLC * Daily Telegraph *
Colourful setting and trenchant social commentary * Kirkus Reviews *
Playful, bittersweet, juggling irony with regret * Independent *
Huelle has a light touch, weaving his stories about French and German cars in pre-war Poland with adventures in post-Soviet traffic so artfully that you do not see where his is taking you until its too late to turn back -- Maureen Freely, Books of the Year 2005 * Independent on Sunday *
Like Dorota Maslowska's White And Red, this is a fine cut of Polish fiction... A quietly pretty meditation on a country taking baby steps * Uncut *
A charming little novel from one of Poland's leading authors * Metro *
Enchanting and highly readable * Buzz *
An unusual and fascinating novel... In this relatively brief, superbly crafted discourse the author manages to convey the nature of the privations suffered by a whole beleagured, but resilient, nation in an accessible and thought-provoking manner. I give this inspirational novel top marks * New Books Mag *
Wonderfully droll -- Boyd Tonkin * Independent *
Author Bio
Pawel Huelle was born in 1957. The author of Who Was David Weiser?, Huelle is a novelist, playwright and journalist who has lived most of his life in Gdansk. His latest novel Castorp was published in Poland in 2004.