Twenty-Four Hours in the Life of a Woman [Paperback]

Stefan Zweig (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 1, 2003

Following the death of her husband, a middle-aged Englishwoman travels through Europe to escape loneliness and boredom. One evening during her stay at the French Riviera, while enjoying the atmosphere of the Monte Carlo Casino, she becomes mesmerized by the obsessive gambling of a young Polish aristocrat. This fateful encounter leads to passion, despair and death, changing both their lives forever.

Stefan Zweig-novelist, librettist, poet, translator and biographer-was born in 1881, a member of a wealthy Austrian-Jewish family. He was educated in Berlin and Vienna. His stories and novellas were collected in 1934 when, faced with the rise of the Nazis he moved to London, taking British citizenship, before settling in Brazil, where, in 1942, he and his wife were found dead in bed.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Stefan Zweig, novelist, biographer, poet and translator, was born in 1881 in Vienna. With the rise of Nazism, he moved from Salzburg to London, New York and Brazil where he died in 1942.

Product Details

• Paperback: 112 pages
• Publisher: Pushkin Press (April 1, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1901285480
• ISBN-13: 978-1901285482
• Product Dimensions: 6.6 x 6.6 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4.5 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,225,978 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

10 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Best weaving with words and emotions., October 24, 2006

By 

Rina Levitt (ISRAEL & USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Twenty Four Hours in the Life of a Woman and The Royal Game (Paperback)

I read this book in my teens. The book was on my parents' book shelves. It was a Hebrew translation from the German. When this was translated, Israel was just reborn, after 2000 years of exile. The Hebrew language was a dormant language that came to life. I am now passed my midlife & will never forget the strong impression that this story made on me. The strongest image that was stuck in my head is the one where the woman in the story was able to sense the mood, agitation or thrill that was expressed in the hands, without looking at the face,of the young Casino gambler. The story is flowing & as in all of Stefan Zweig's writings, it penetrates to the heart & sole of the characters. It is a work of art, like the most beautiful weaved carpet. Few weeks ago, I was visiting my brother's house & saw the book that I read as teenager on his shelf. I was so excited. I borrowed it from him & reread it in one gulp. The thing that amazed me was that after so many years, I felt like I never left the book, just that the translation felt to me so archaic. It actually added an unusual taste of nostalgia. I tried to get the book in a new translation in Hebrew, but couldn't find it. There are new translations of Stefan Zweig into Hebrew, but, unfortunately, as other reviewers commented on, this amazingly sensitive writer is not getting the place that he deserves to have. It is such a pity. Luckily enough, my English reading is as good as my Hebrew, so I looked for it in Amazon & found it. In my old Hebrew translation, there are 2 more stories. A very special one is "Burning Secret". This is as sensitive & cleverly weaved as the "24 hours in the life of a woman".

Don't miss any of the above.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A Little Gem of a Novel, September 12, 2003

By 

L. Young "palmtree2000" (West Orange, NJ USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Twenty-Four Hours in the Life of a Woman (Paperback)

Perhaps not as psychologically compelling and taut as some of Zweig's other work, this novella is still worth reading for it's fine writing. At a hotel in Monte Carlo in the days after World War I, a group of wealthy travelers are shocked to learn that a married woman of their set has suddenly left her husband and family on the arms of a seducer whom she has known less then twenty-four hours. Each guest chimes in with their opinion of the woman's extraordinary behavior. Our narrator expresses his understanding of the woman's actions while the others vehemently condemn the lady. Suddenly he finds himself the confidante of an older woman who is in the group. She tells him the tale of how twenty years earlier she too had been drawn to an intense younger man who she observed in the casino one evening. Zweig explores the motivations and the ramifications of a sudden act of passion.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A gambler, April 15, 2005

By 

Luc REYNAERT (Beernem, Belgium) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Twenty-Four Hours in the Life of a Woman (Paperback)

This story is Stefan Zweig's version of 'The Gambler'. Although it doesn't rival Dostoyevsky's portrait, it is certainly a very worth-while read.

A woman falls under the spell of a gambler who lost his fortune and is on the verge of committing suicide. She tries desperately to save him.

This is an impressive short novel, because of the strong emerging feelings which erupt like volcanoes and leave the main characters totally upset. The endgame and the end are stunning.

It is one of Stefan Zweig's most successful short novels, although he is handicapped by the comparison with Dostoyevsky.