Cornelia Funke tells stories of fairies and mud monsters, of adventurous girls, a gang of children in Venice ? and her stories somewhere between fantasy and adventure are Germany?s most successful literary export at the moment....
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Gazeta Wyborcza
| The New York Review of Books | Elet es Irodalom | Le Nouvel Observateur | Al Ahram Weekly | L'Espresso | Die Weltwoche | Polityka | DU
Gazeta Wyborcza, 04.03.2006 (Poland)
Five years ago, Poland began the "Jedwabne Debate," which threw the country's understanding of itself into question (more here). At issue is the murder of roughly 1,600 Jews that took place in the town of Jedwabne in 1941 – instigated by German soldiers of the occupying forces and carried out by Polish peasants. For a long time, Poland denied its involvement, not wanting to jeopardize its mythical historic status as a victimized nation. Journalist Anna Bikont, who covered the story for Gazeta, recounts what happened after the truth had been uncovered. "Only the perpetrators feel secure and talk proudly of their patriotism. Those who fought for the truth have to leave. In Jedwabne itself, there are no traces of the crime. Here there is no happy end."
The New York Review of Books, 23.03.2006 (U.S.A.)
The British author and avowed gambler Al Alvarez pays tribute to the best and canniest Poker player of all time, Stu Ungar, also known as "The Kid," whose biography "One of a Kind" has been written by Nolan Dalla and Peter Alson. "Stuey, reared by thugs, had no charm. 'He was an obnoxious winner and a poor sport,' his biographers write, 'a taunter and a braggart,' who had no 'understanding of the art of the hustle. Once he started playing, his competitive instincts took over and overwhelmed common sense. His mission wasn't to win money - it was to destroy people and be the best ever. As a result, he... scared away potential opponents." Here a picture of Ungar, on the right, in front of his third million dollar win in Las Vegas.
Elet es Irodalom, 03.03.2006 (Hungary)
A few weeks ago, the young historian Krisztian Ungvary revealed that Cardinal Laszlo Paskai, former head of the Hungarian Catholic church, used to spy for the Hungarian secret service. This unleashed a heated debate about the relationship between the Catholic church and the secret police, to which Ungarvy now responds: "In the course of the debate, it has been demanded, rightly, that not only the former spies be exposed but also the secret police officers. Preventing this are the bishops, who, for fear of being tarnished, are protecting their oppressors by still refusing to speak.(...) The Kadar regime is not yet over, contrary to appearances. Many still bear the burden of the dictatorship internally, still obeying the rules which once governed them. They could free themselves from the bondage of dictatorship if they would tell their stories openly. They don't need to be afraid. A series of spectacular cases shows that society wants to forgive them."
Le Nouvel Observateur, 02.03.2006 (France)
In a rather nasty birthday article marking "30 years of the Nouveaux Philosophes," Aude Lancelin analyzes the early success of Andre Glucksmann and Bernhard-Henri Levy with their anti-totalitarian books as the "definitively anti-progressive turn of an entire faction of the French intelligentsia." Lancelin recalls the furious attacks of Gilles Deleuze against the anti-totalitarian young thinkers and cites Glucksmann's response: "Yes, my dear Gilles, the Gulag is no comma in a text by Kant! The Gulag is a swearword, a bitter pill which we threw in the soup of the blinded French intelligentsia." (Read our feature "Separating truth and belief" by Glucksmann here.)
Al Ahram Weekly, 02.03.2006 (Egypt)
Nehad Selaiha is full of praise for the Arabic premiere of Jean Genet's brothel play "The Balcony" in the Al-Hanager Theatre in Cairo. "Though it has been around for half a century and lost its potential to shock or outrage in the West, staging 'The Balcony' in the Arab/Islamic world still remains a daunting challenge.... The costume designer, Sarah Enany, had a hellish time convincing some of the actresses that girls in a brothel, ministering to the weird, erotic fantasies of its patrons, could not possibly be dressed according to the traditional laws of 'chastity' in the East and, as she tells me, spent nerve-racking hours bargaining over an inch up and down in a dress..."
L'Espresso, 03.03.2006 (Italy)
Russia has little to offer other than gas and guns, writes Andrzej Stasiuk in his profile of the country. But that's more than enough. "Everyone needs both the Kalashnikov and the gas, it's that simple. Everyone needs cheap weapons to survive, everyone needs energy. Aggression and access to energy are Siamese twins. The aggression serves to guarantee the energy and with more energy, you can behave more aggressively and so it goes, to the bitter end. That's the essence of the Russian genius."
See our feature "Not a living soul around" by Andrzej Stasiuk.
Die Weltwoche, 02.03.2006 (Switzerland)
In an interview with Sacha Verna, 84-year-old American writer Kurt Vonnegut calls God a totem pole and every president an addlepate. "The tragic mistake of every democracy comes from the fact that only a harebrain
would want to become president. My high school class was democratically
organised. We elected a class president, a class vice-president, a
secretary and so on. Everyone who went out for president was barmy in
one way or another. All they wanted was to be elected. All George W.
Bush wanted was to be elected. Aside from that he didn't have any plans
at all. His friends, on the other hand, had all kinds of plans, and they're the ones now running the country."
Polityka, 04.03.2006 (Poland)
Political cinema of the type so popular at the Berlinale and other international festivals hardly has a chance in Poland, says the filmmaker Andrzej Wajda
in an interview. "It's no wonder films with political or social themes
hardly attract viewers in a country where only half the population goes
to the polls. I hope my younger colleagues will make films about
today's Poland, films that not only interest people at home and abroad,
but also bear witness to our struggle for Poland's place in the new
Europe." Wajda, who is now working on a film about the Katyn Massacre, is also amazed that what audiences really want is fables. "Is today's reality so abhorrent?"
DU, 01.03.2006 (Switzerland)
The Swiss magazine DU sets a counterpoint to the Mozart year with an issue on the "geometric composer" Johann Sebastian Bach. Travelling
through Albania with an orchestra, violist Volker Hagedorn has a lot of
time to think about Bach. "Eight-four time, up and down in a multitude
of tiny steps like a diligent little wanderer, while far away we hear magnificence in five voices.
There is something very mundane and touching about this dogged labour
of the basses before the weightless vocal horizon. It develops softly,
very much like the immobile horizon that gradually changes when seen
from a moving bus. This music is like a panorama, with infinite room
for views of the world. And while the violins play golden high tones, the violas listen for 45 bars, silent witnesses to this balance of worlds."
RSS
In Eurozine the 69-year-old Catalan philosopher Xavier Rubert de Ventos admits to his growing radicality. In Nepszabadsag the 75-year-old writer György Konrad declares: remembering is rebellion. In Artforum the 84-year-old philosopher Artur C. Danto thinks about art and revolution. In The New Republic Anne Applebaum takes a hammer to Nicholson Baker's pacifist polemic "Human Smoke". In Folio Christian Demand sends out a distress signal for art criticism. And the Spectator portrays the Anglican Church's only openly gay Bishop.
In the TLS, tenor Ian Bostridge writes about music under totalitarianism. The New Yorker introduces the millionaire-nerd-led group "Intellectual Ventures". Caffe Europe describes Aldo Moro's attempt to reconcile Church and communism. Nepszabadsag and Elet es Irodalom analyse the frequently misundertood concept of "competition" in Hungary. The London Review of Books explains Thabo Mbeki's motivations for backing Mugabe. And in the Weltwoche, violinist Julia Fischer demonstrates how to put up a wall.
Literaturen searches in the giant haystack of literature on '68 for a book on equal rights. The TLS rediscovers the man who sexed the English language. In Outlook India, political scientist Kishore Mahbubani closes the lid on Western cultural dominance. The New York Review of Books looks at the dominance of the national conservatives in Putin's Russia. Le Monde des livres reports on a clash of historians over the role of Islam in the Middle Ages. The Economist fears for freedom of the press in Eastern Europe. And the New York Times portrays Egyptian author Alaa Al Aswan.
In the Weltwoche, Tom Ford makes the case for full, natural pubic hair. Vanity Fair blames Bill Keller for the diminishing Timesness of the New York Times. In Espresso, Umberto Eco mourns the diminishing importance of the newpapers all together. The Times waves its fork about over the English breakfast. In L'Express, über ad-man Maurice Levy wants to give the industry a complete rehaul. The LRB experiences the joy of French painting, the TLS the joy of German Romanticism, the Economist the joy of Japanese "infantile capitalism and Al Ahram, the joy of Russian photography. The New Yorker conquers English with Li Yang.
Elet es Irodolam knows that 'minor literature' doesn't have to be political to be political. World Affairs defends Hirsi Ali, Bruckner and Berman against Buruma, Garton Ash und Ramadan. Rue 89 works through a black book of censorship. In the TLS professor of geriatric medicine, Raymond Tallis, argues that too much brain is the death of literary criticism. Hector Abad speaks out against literary protectionism in Semana. Outlook India is thoroughly put out: revolution is simply not cricket. And Vanity Fair plunges into icy water with the Russians. 
The New Left Review introduces China's most influential intellectual magazine, Dushu. Outlook India would be embarrassed to be embarrassed by the Dalai Lama. "Generation 1,000 Euro" has made into Italian cinemas, Caffe Europa reports. In Nepszabadsag, philosopher Gaspar Miklos Tama declares an end to the days of anti-Semitic journalism. Folio is bowled over by the musical compositions of electronic engineer William Sethares. The New York Times is transported back to the founding of Liberia. And Vanity Fair picks apart Monsanto.
In the Blätter Jürgen Habermas joins the debate launched by signandsight.com and Perlentaucher about Islam in Europe. Merkur reveals how Adorno pinned his hopes on the Nazis and had them dashed. In La vie des idees philospher Philippe Lacour celebrates the true DJ of digital knowledge. In Literaturen Micha Brumlik reviews the new Carl Schmitt biography by Christian Lindner. Nepszabadsag takes the pulse of the unconscious body of Hungary. In Edge.org evolutionary biologist Iain Couzin explains the importance of one mormon cricket wanting to bite another in the rear. And New Republic puts its favourite Democrat on the cover.
Le debat explains why the press is on its way out. The New York Times is starting to look like the next victim of a hostile takeover by Murdoch, fears Howell Raines in Portfolio. The New Yorker sees the end in sight for the entire American newspaper industry. ResetDoc examines the role of immigrants in the Italian election campaign. In Europa, Leszek Kolakowski philosophises on success. Aharon Applefeld tells Rue89 what he will be writing about when he turns 268. And Die Weltwoche asks whether anyone in German literature is still taking risks.
Vanity Fair exposes a scandalously covert, Bush-approved operation in the Middle East. In the NYRB, Nicholson Baker extols the virtues of the Wiki vandal. Edwy Plenel announces the launch of a new independent online paper Mediapart. L'Espresso sniffs out the diabolicalness of cheese. Expert Sibir sounds out the Siberian art market. And the Economist inspects the tumorous bureaucracy in the belly of the tiger.
The London Review of Books is concerned about second-hand journalism in Britain. Prospect fills us in on the Chinese intellectual scene. Al Ahram explains why Egyptians prefer their flags made in China. Caffe Europa asks: where was Tariq Ramadan when Milan Kundera's book was banned at the Cairo Book Fair. And Gazeta Wyborcza examines the self-confidence of the Polish worker.
A healthy selection this week! Nigerian women should be punished, because they've only got oil on the brain, The Atlantic discovers. Nepszabadsag is amazed: Jan T. Gross has avoided offending the Turkishness of the Poles by the skin of his teeth. Columbian Hector Abad Faciolince sees the human face of Swiss conservatism. The precariat is today's working class, Telerama announces. Al Ahram introduces the first beauty salon for veiled women. And Denis Johnson discovers Paul Wolfowitz's wet dream in Iraqi Kurdistan.
The New York Review of Books sees the future of America in a Harlem hairdressers. In the Gazeta Wyborcza, Serbian historian Slavenko Terzic declares Kosovo's independence illegal. The London Review of Books considers the links between Modernism and liberalism, or the lack thereof. In the Novel Obs, Edgar Morin explains how he became a radical anti-Stalinist. Zanan is dead, long live Zanan! cries Al Ahram. The New York Times portrays the Turkish-Kurdish politician Abdullah Demirbas who wanted to ease the pressure on the Kurds and Armenians to assimilate in Turkey.
Why do Germans like Nicolas Gomez Davila, asks Semana. Le Monde diplomatique goes on a cruise with some Park Avenue ladies. The Spectator buries Venice. Nepszabadsag looks for real Hungarian liberal democrats. In Edge.org, Kevin Kelly looks to the future of the culture industry in the internet. And Portfolio has seen the nemesis of the culture industry in the internet.
The Blätter für deutsche und internationale Politik warns about Google the monster snoop. Merkur has a transcendental experience with Gerhard Richter and Swarovski. Prospect worries about traditional book reviewing. In Nepszabadsag, historian Dusan Kovac looks into the likelihood of Hungarian-Slovakian reconciliation. And the New Statesman searches for the mild Anglican God.