The Glass Bead Game

by Hermann Hesse

The final novel of Hermann Hesse, for which he won the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1946, The Glass Bead Game is a fascinating tale of the complexity of modern life as well as a classic of modern literature

Set in the 23rd century, The Glass Bead Game is the story of Joseph Knecht, who has been raised in Castalia, the remote place his society has provided for the intellectual elite to grow and flourish. Since childhood, Knecht has been consumed with mastering the Glass Bead Game, which requires a synthesis of aesthetics and scientific arts, such as mathematics, music, logic, and philosophy, which he achieves in adulthood, becoming a Magister Ludi (Master of the Game).

• ISBN10: 0312278497
• ISBN13: 9780312278496
• Publish Date: 6 December 2002 (first published 11 June 1970)
• Publish Status: Active
• Publish Country: US
• Imprint: Picador USA
• Edition: Picador USA ed
• Format: Paperback
• Pages: 558
• Language: English

Reviews

[ayla_abbott]

It's probably great, but not my style. One of the few books I've had to put down because I just couldn't get into it. Like Gravity's Rainbow or Dhalgren...just couldn't see the point of going on, even after making it halfway through. If you love biographies, and science fiction, and whatever this is, you'll probably love it.

[pamela]

DNF'd at 10%. This book read like nothing but densely packed intellectual snobbery.

Might one day try it in German, as I always worry about translation. Nuance is very important, especially in Hesse, I've found. Maybe it will seem less pretentious with the literal construction of the German language.