Read Around Europe Challenge
Read at least one book by an author from each country in Europe.
Best books from Europe (2670)
821.
On War by Carl von Clausewitz EN
GermanyDescription:
This abridged edition of On War by Beatrice Heuser, using the acclaimed translation by Michael Howard and Peter Paret, selects the central books in which Clausewitz's views on the nature and theory of war are developed.
822.
Undine by Friedrich de La Motte Fouqué EN
Description:
Undine is a novel by Friedrich de la Motte Fouque concerning Undine, a water spirit who marries a Knight named Huldebrand in order to gain a soul. It is an early German romance, which has been translated into English and other languages. During the nineteenth century the book was very popular and was, according to The Times in 1843, "a book which, of all others, if you ask for it at a foreign library, you are sure to find engaged."
823.
Elective Affinities by Johann Wolfgang von Goethe EN
Description:
In Elective Affinities Goethe conducts an experiment with the lives of people who are living badly. Charlotte and Eduard, aristocracts with little to occupy them, invite Ottilie and the Captain into their lives; against morality, good sense, and conscious volition all four are drawn into relationships as inexorably as if they were substances in a chemical equation. The novel asks whether we have free will or not; more disturbingly, it confronts its characters with the monstrous consequences of their repression of any real life in themselves. Goethe wrote Elective Affinities when he was sixty a... continue
825.
Mary Stuart by Friedrich Schiller EN
Description:
This work details the dramatic final days of Mary, Queen of Scots. The action opens with Mary's unjust imprisonment and ends with her execution, which is ultimately ordered by Mary's morally conflicted cousin, Queen Elizabeth of England. Schiller's play is widely regarded as one of the finest literary distillations of these controversial historical events, and the text served as the basis for the opera Maria Stuarda.
826.
The Caucasian Chalk Circle by Bertolt Brecht EN
Description:
Written in exile during the Second World War, the story of Brecht's classic play subverts an ancient Chinese tale - echoed in the Judgement of Solomon - in which two women claim the same child. The message of Brecht's parable is that resources should go to those who will make best use of them. Thanks to the rascally judge, Azdak, one of Brecht's most vivid creations, this story has a happy outcome: the child is entrusted to the peasant Grusha, who has loved and nurtured it. Published in Methuen Drama's Modern Classics series, this edition features an extensive introduction, Brecht's own notes ... continue
827.
Mother Courage and Her Children by Bertolt Brecht EN
Description:
Widely considered one of the great dramatic creations of the modem stage, Mother Courage and Her Children is Bertolt Brecht s most passionate and profound statement against war. Set in the seventeenth century, the play follows Anna Fierling ( Mother Courage ), an itinerant trader, as she pulls her wagon of wares and her children through the blood and carnage of Europe s religious wars. Battered by hardships, brutality, and the degradation and death of her children, she ultimately finds herself alone with the one thing in which she truly believes her ramshackle wagon with its tattered flag and ... continue
828.
Death in Venice by Thomas Mann EN
Description:
A tale of genius in which Thomas Mann explores the artist's relation to life. First published in 1912, Death in Venice tells how Gustave von Aschenbach, a writer utterly absorbed in his work, arrives in Venice as the result of a 'youthfully ardent thirst for distant scenes', and meets a young boy by whose beauty he becomes obsessed. His pitiful pursuit of the object of his affection and its inevitable and pathetic climax are told here with the particular skill the author has for this shorter form of fiction.
829.
Description:
Lily Reyes is trying to win the fight against Depression. Well, more or less trying as childhood trauma lets her believe that the world is too cruel to be living in. In Lily's world, everything makes as much sense as breathing underwater. Yet, as she is preparing her goodbyes, Lily makes one little mistake. She accidentally leaves her notebook for him to find. Colin Carter is the captain of St. Trewery's hockey team. A man that offers more than just good looks. He's facing struggles of his own, ones he feels too guilty to talk about. And yet... Lily's life now lies in his hands. And in only ni... continue
830.
Der Vorleser by Bernhard Schlink DE
Description:
Sie ist reizbar, rätselhaft und viel älter als er ... und sie wird seine erste Leidenschaft. Sie hütet verzweifelt ein Geheimnis. Eines Tages ist sie spurlos verschwunden. Erst Jahre später sieht er sie wieder. Die fast kriminalistische Erforschung einer sonderbaren Liebe und bedrängenden Vergangenheit.