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Muller, Herta; Mueller, Herta (Translated by Martin Chalmers) : The Passport: A Surreal Tale Of Life In Romania Today

The Serpent's Tail, London, England, 1989

ISBN 1852421398

First Edition / First Printing. Fine in No Dust Jacket, As Issued. 95 pages. The author's first novel to be translated into English. One of the greatest literary debuts of the 20th century. The first appearance of the title in English and in the United Kingdom. Precedes and should not be confused with all other subsequent printings. Published in a small and limited first print run as a softcover original only. There is no American Edition. The First Edition is now rare. Presents Herta Muller's "Der Mensch ist ein Grosser fasan auf der Welt" in a felicitous English translation. A fable-novel on her beloved fellow Romanians of German descent. They were persecuted twice in Ceausescu's totalitarian regime: As a despised and mistrusted minority and as implacable anti-Communists. The defiance takes its toll as the close-knit community is "breaking up, a dying village whose German inhabitants all seek to emigrate. A chilling, far-sighted, and lyrical graveside speech for a sad village in a sad land". Regarded as a national icon in Germany, "a living Goethe" (rhymes with Herta), Muller was awarded the Nobel Prize on the 20th Anniversary of the Fall of Communism: "The Committee has recognized an author who refuses to let the inhumane side of life under Communism be forgotten". That is a direct rebuke of Milan Kundera's famous (and frivolous) statement that "the condemnation of totalitarianism doesn't deserve a novel". Yes, it does, and in Muller's writing, what being human means in the context of a totalitarian system has a metaphysical lyricism. An absolute "must-have" title for Herta Muller collectors. This copy is very prominently and beautifully signed in black pen on the title page by Herta Muller. It is signed directly on the page itself, not on a tipped-in page. Muller made a rare and historic appearance at the 2012 PEN World Voices Festival of International Literature, during which her signature was obtained. Laid-in is a pristine copy of Philip Boehm's translation of her Nobel Prize Acceptance Speech, which was distributed during the Festival. This title is a modern classic. As far as we know, this is the only such signed copy of the First British Edition/First Printing available online and is in especially fine condition: Clean, crisp, and bright, a pristine beauty. Please note: Copies available online are subsequent printings. There is NO American Edition. A rare signed copy thus. Winner of The Kleist Prize, one of the most prestigious prizes given to writers in German, in 1994. Winner of the International IMPAC Dublin Literary Award in 1998 for "The Land of Green Plums". Winner of the European Literature Prize in 2006. Winner of the Nobel Prize for Literature in 2009. One of the greatest writers of our time. A fine collectible copy. (SEE ALSO OTHER HERTA MULLER TITLES IN OUR CATALOG). ISBN 1852421398.

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