Who Was David Weiser? [Hardcover]

Pawel Huelle (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 1992

In Gdansk, three boys and a girl fall under the spell of a mysterious classmate, David Weiser. Weiser and thegirl vanish, leaving the three other boys to explain to the authorities. "Tender, beautifully written and puzzling" (New York Times Book Review). Translated by Michael Kandel. A Helen and Kurt Wolff Book. Harvest in Translation series

--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

This strange, almost hypnotic but ultimately unsatisfying novel by a Polish literature professor examines the summer of 1957 in Gdansk. Looking back from the present day, the narrator, Heller, describes how he and his friends, then 11-year-olds, grew involved with a mysterious classmate, the eponymous Weiser. A Jew, Weiser seems possessed of magical powers, and the boys fall under his sway, eventually becoming unwitting accomplices to his inexplicable disappearance. In a ruminative narrative--filled with repetitions which become almost musical in structure, asides, false starts, flash forwards and flashbacks--Huelle offers a hard-nosed, Polish version of magical realism. A small boy, for example, entrances a panther in the local zoo, levitates himself and sets off surreal explosions. Rumbling in the background are the political upheavals of 1970 and 1980, events that will kill a central character. The novel is on its surest footing in its merciless delineation of a sadistic teacher, and in a spirited series of digressions involving an escaped lunatic. But the denouement, regrettably, leaves many questions unanswered, including the one posed by the title.
Copyright 1991 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Library Journal

Author-journalist-professor Huelle makes an auspicious debut with this highly creative first novel, originally published in 1987 in his native Poland. Reaching into his memory, seeking help futilely from childhood friends, the novel's protagonist aims to discover what really happened to David Weiser 30 years ago during the summer of 1957 in Gdansk. Does his memory serve him well when he recalls feats of levitation and spectacular explosions, Jew-baiting, and thousands of dead fish, or is it playing tricks on him? The novel unfolds with stories nested in stories while the author makes intriguing use of fictive time, interweaving past, present, and future. The novel, well translated here, is an imaginative tour de force by one of Poland's most prominent contemporary writers. Essential for libraries whose patrons are interested in European fiction.
- Olivia Opello, Onondaga Cty. P.L., Syracuse, N.Y.
Copyright 1992 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Hardcover
• Publisher: Harcourt; 1St Edition edition (January 1992)
• ISBN-10: 068551157X
• ISBN-13: 978-0685511572
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #5,118,020 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars An excellent book in the tradition of Gunter Grass, May 22, 2000

By 

Matt Valentine (Austin, Texas) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Who Was David Weiser? (Hardcover)

This is a special book, a nostalgic look backward on a postwar Poland and the mysteries encountered there by schoolboys. Huelle writes brilliantly--his subtle observations on Polish culture are tenderly conveyed through the naive explorations of children. These boys, while coming to an awareness of themselves sexually and intellectually, develop as well a sense of their community, of its religion, politics, and its tragic wartime history. Huelle's style borrows heaviliy from Gunter Grass; he deftly employs magical ambiguities which create a tone of supernatural intrigue.

1 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Who Was David Weiser?, June 6, 2000

By 

Jimmy Protsenko - See all my reviews

This review is from: Who Was David Weiser? (Paperback)

I read the book for my East European literature class. It is very interesting, written in a simple language. David is indeed a cool dude. And his girlfriend too.

0 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Interestin'...., September 27, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Who Was David Weiser? (Paperback)

Just started readin the book today and it's quite intriguing, I must say. I spent 2 hours looking for a good book to pick out at the library, and I have a feeling this is one. David Weiser is one cool dude!