Steppenwolf

A wonderful book about a journey in hell or a manual of how to face your “noche obscura”. The contrast between nihilism and emerging existentialism and the dialectical harmony between Continental philosophy (mostly Plato, Schopenhauer and Nietzsche) and Indian wisdom is superb. I almost feel skeptical towards the novels written today (which I usually enjoy) after reading this 1927 manifesto about the destruction and resurrection of Atman.

It was entertaining reading Herman's critique on 1920s European bourgeois decadence, spiritual atrophy and mechanisation. Its interesting to see reflections of this critique in other writers like Orwell, Chatwin and Lawrence, inviting wonder on the timeless effects of civilisation on humankind. This book gets pretty gnarly towards the end as our protagonist begins to enter into some abstract realms with strange characters. Overall I liked Hesse's self reflection and hypocrisy in Haller, but got a bit bored with the sections of prolonged dialogue and romantic tropes. But maybe I need to give this one another shot, perhaps reading Siddharta will contextualise me with Hesse's interests in spirituality, enriching my re-reading of this book.

Altough slumpy and clunky at first, the book soon picks up pace and by adding new characters it makes you involved into it. The plot is one that has been met before, a lonely man that rejects the society around himself, but he starts to enjoy life and change when a woman appears in his life. Even if sometimes is got a bit too philosophical and complicated for it to be a light read, the book was fairly enjoyable, especially towards the end, when everything gets metaphorical and Hesse says its up to you to decide what the ending was. Could have been a five star if not for the slow start and some of the longer self analysis paragraphs.