Erich Hackl
Encyclopedia
Erich Hackl is an Austria
n novelist and short-story writer. His works have been translated into English
, Spanish
, French
and Czech, though he is significantly better known in the German
-speaking world. Many of his works, notably Sara und Simón, bear resemblance to Latin-American testimonial
literature, and as such have been the focus of scholarly research by Latin Americanists.
His work has also been well-received in the UK. A review in The Times Literary Supplement
called The Wedding in Auschwitz “an exceptional book” because the author “has chosen not to conceal the documentary origins of his novel. Rather than producing a researched-based fictionalized account, honouring history and abiding by the literary conventions, he has given himself entirely to the subject … a remarkable suppression of the authorial ego … Hackl does not impose a novelist’s order … and yet the tension of the story never fails, interest never wanes. This is because Hackl understands that any ambiguity about detail is in contrast to an unshakeable sense of inevitability, and his narrative exploits what every reader must know: there will be no happy endings.”
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
n novelist and short-story writer. His works have been translated into English
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
, Spanish
Spanish language
Spanish , also known as Castilian , is a Romance language in the Ibero-Romance group that evolved from several languages and dialects in central-northern Iberia around the 9th century and gradually spread with the expansion of the Kingdom of Castile into central and southern Iberia during the...
, French
French language
French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
and Czech, though he is significantly better known in the German
German language
German is a West Germanic language, related to and classified alongside English and Dutch. With an estimated 90 – 98 million native speakers, German is one of the world's major languages and is the most widely-spoken first language in the European Union....
-speaking world. Many of his works, notably Sara und Simón, bear resemblance to Latin-American testimonial
Testimonial
In promotion and of advertising, a testimonial or show consists of a written or spoken statement, sometimes from a person figure, sometimes from a private citizen, extolling the virtue of some product. The term "testimonial" most commonly applies to the sales-pitches attributed to ordinary...
literature, and as such have been the focus of scholarly research by Latin Americanists.
His work has also been well-received in the UK. A review in The Times Literary Supplement
The Times Literary Supplement
The Times Literary Supplement is a weekly literary review published in London by News International, a subsidiary of News Corporation.-History:...
called The Wedding in Auschwitz “an exceptional book” because the author “has chosen not to conceal the documentary origins of his novel. Rather than producing a researched-based fictionalized account, honouring history and abiding by the literary conventions, he has given himself entirely to the subject … a remarkable suppression of the authorial ego … Hackl does not impose a novelist’s order … and yet the tension of the story never fails, interest never wanes. This is because Hackl understands that any ambiguity about detail is in contrast to an unshakeable sense of inevitability, and his narrative exploits what every reader must know: there will be no happy endings.”