As he struggles with the tiny Fiat’s gearbox and Gdansk’s traffic, Pawel, the narrator, entertains his driving instructor with stories of his grandparents before the war and of his father in the 1970s, centered on their ownership of Mercedes-Benz cars—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 prewar independence with the dismal Communist years and with the uncertain new chapter in the country’s history that had only just begun. With elegant brilliance, Huelle creates a touching portrait of three generations amid life-changing historical events.
Born in 1957, Pawel Huelle , the author of Who Was David Weiser? , is a novelist, playwright, and journalist who has lived most of his life in Gdansk.
'Playful, bittersweet, juggling irony with regret' -- The Independent, 3 March 2006
About the Author
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 novels, Mercedes-Benz and Castorp, translated into many languages, are also published by Serpent's Tail
Description:
As he struggles with the tiny Fiat’s gearbox and Gdansk’s traffic, Pawel, the narrator, entertains his driving instructor with stories of his grandparents before the war and of his father in the 1970s, centered on their ownership of Mercedes-Benz cars—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 prewar independence with the dismal Communist years and with the uncertain new chapter in the country’s history that had only just begun. With elegant brilliance, Huelle creates a touching portrait of three generations amid life-changing historical events.
Born in 1957, Pawel Huelle , the author of Who Was David Weiser? , is a novelist, playwright, and journalist who has lived most of his life in Gdansk.
From Publishers Weekly
Written in the form of a letter to Bohumil Hrabal, Huelle's autobiographical novel (complete with personal photographs) is also an homage to the late Czech writer. With long, expressive and visual sentences characteristic of his predecessor's work, Huelle tells the stories of three generations in Poland, from its pre-war independence through the communist years to the uncertain period of Huelle's youth at the turn of the century.
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Review
'Playful, bittersweet, juggling irony with regret' -- The Independent, 3 March 2006
About the Author
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 novels, Mercedes-Benz and Castorp, translated into many languages, are also published by Serpent's Tail