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Zamonien #5
Der Schrecksenmeister
In Sledwaya, der Stadt, in der »das Gesunde krank und das Kranke gesund« ist, spielt der neue Roman des zamonischen Großschriftstellers Hildegunst von Mythenmetz. Er handelt von der Auseinandersetzung zwischen Echo, dem hochbegabten Krätzchen, und Succubius Eißpin, dem furchtbaren Schrecksenmeister Sledwayas, der Faust und Mephisto in einer Person zu verkörpern scheint. Dieser lässt nichts unversucht, um sich mittels der Alchimie zum Herrn über Leben und Tod aufzuschwingen – und dazu braucht er nichts notwendiger als das Fett von Echo, der gezwungen ist, einen teuflischen Vertrag mit Eißpin abzuschließen..
383 pages, Hardcover
First published August 31, 2007
About the author
Walter Moers
80 books2,251 followersWalter Moers was born in 1957 and is a writer, cartoonist, painter and sculptor. He has refused to be photographed ever since his comic strips The Little Asshole and Adolf were published, the latter leading him to be declared persona non grata by the political right in Germany. Walter Moers lives in Hamburg.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 380 reviews
April 29, 2023
Let's just call it the adventures of Echo the Crat. Because that's what it is.
Of course, that doesn't quite do the culinary genre justice, nor does the bargain to eat all he wants for the low, low price of being rendered into tallow for an evil old man quite do the stakes justice.
That's merely the appetizer.
There's a lot of great imagination in here, packed page by page, evoking a Goethian nightmare, an intellectual paradise, and a taste for tongue (not merely for the words it swirls) bar none.
The novel is worth a great, slow, lazy read. Don't worry if you get fat on words. I promise, the author won't process you for your fat. I promise.
Of course, that doesn't quite do the culinary genre justice, nor does the bargain to eat all he wants for the low, low price of being rendered into tallow for an evil old man quite do the stakes justice.
That's merely the appetizer.
There's a lot of great imagination in here, packed page by page, evoking a Goethian nightmare, an intellectual paradise, and a taste for tongue (not merely for the words it swirls) bar none.
The novel is worth a great, slow, lazy read. Don't worry if you get fat on words. I promise, the author won't process you for your fat. I promise.
April 29, 2023
This is a wonderful amalgamation of Goeste's masterpiece, Faust, a Frankenstein-esque horror story and the typical elements of a master-and-student wizard duo.
Echo is a Krätzchen, cat-like creature capable of speech and since his owner has died, he's starving in the streets of Sledwaya. Sledwaya is a truly weird city where the healthy is sick and the sick is healthy. The city has a so-called Schrecksenmeister, an alchemist every citizen fears. His name is Succubius Eißpin and he's the one who finds Echo and offers him a Faustian deal: he will take Echo in and give him every imaginable comfort including the most delicious hand-made foods until the next full moon, then he'll kill Echo for his fat - a vital ingrediant in his attempt to become the master over Life and Death. Echo accepts but within the next month, he tries to find a way out. Along the way, he makes friends with a cooked ghost, an almost all-knowing bird and a Schreckse (a mix between a witch and soothsayer).
The sheer amount of delicious-sounding dishes cooked in this book was enough to make me gain weight. *lol* But I think what I loved the most was the masterful blend of three of literature's most memorable, impressive and fantastic works. Moers even used some quotes (slightly adapted to work within the framework of Zamonia). I loved Mary Shelley's Frankenstein and even enjoy the movies his creation features in (though they usually get it dead wrong), was very impressed when reading Goethe's Faust in school (haven't been able to get it out of my head since) and still adore Goethe's Der Zauberlehrling (yes, I can recite it by heart).
At this point, I don't think I need to say much about the author's own ability to create magic with his words. He's not quite as political as Terry Pratchett but otherwise, he's right up there with him. The wit, the quirkiness, the inventiveness, the beautiful prose ...
Instead, I shall comment on the audiobook edition at this point. This was the first I read that wasn't narrated by Dirk Bach. I was highly sceptical, to be honest, since bringing such a world to life requires some serious talent. I'm happy to report that Andreas Fröhlich did a formidable job! So much so that I'm looking forward to hearing more of him in the remaining books of this series.
Every book in this series is so fantastic that I really couldn't say which is my favorite. Sure, some have a natural lead since they are about everything that makes a bibliophile's heart beat faster, but I marvel every time I read an installment because no matter what it is about, I get sucked in and am having the time of my life! It is too bad that Moers and his Zamonia books aren't more well-known / famous throughout the world! If you can get your hands on one, don't hesitate, it's absolutely worth it.
Echo is a Krätzchen, cat-like creature capable of speech and since his owner has died, he's starving in the streets of Sledwaya. Sledwaya is a truly weird city where the healthy is sick and the sick is healthy. The city has a so-called Schrecksenmeister, an alchemist every citizen fears. His name is Succubius Eißpin and he's the one who finds Echo and offers him a Faustian deal: he will take Echo in and give him every imaginable comfort including the most delicious hand-made foods until the next full moon, then he'll kill Echo for his fat - a vital ingrediant in his attempt to become the master over Life and Death. Echo accepts but within the next month, he tries to find a way out. Along the way, he makes friends with a cooked ghost, an almost all-knowing bird and a Schreckse (a mix between a witch and soothsayer).
The sheer amount of delicious-sounding dishes cooked in this book was enough to make me gain weight. *lol* But I think what I loved the most was the masterful blend of three of literature's most memorable, impressive and fantastic works. Moers even used some quotes (slightly adapted to work within the framework of Zamonia). I loved Mary Shelley's Frankenstein and even enjoy the movies his creation features in (though they usually get it dead wrong), was very impressed when reading Goethe's Faust in school (haven't been able to get it out of my head since) and still adore Goethe's Der Zauberlehrling (yes, I can recite it by heart).
At this point, I don't think I need to say much about the author's own ability to create magic with his words. He's not quite as political as Terry Pratchett but otherwise, he's right up there with him. The wit, the quirkiness, the inventiveness, the beautiful prose ...
Instead, I shall comment on the audiobook edition at this point. This was the first I read that wasn't narrated by Dirk Bach. I was highly sceptical, to be honest, since bringing such a world to life requires some serious talent. I'm happy to report that Andreas Fröhlich did a formidable job! So much so that I'm looking forward to hearing more of him in the remaining books of this series.
Every book in this series is so fantastic that I really couldn't say which is my favorite. Sure, some have a natural lead since they are about everything that makes a bibliophile's heart beat faster, but I marvel every time I read an installment because no matter what it is about, I get sucked in and am having the time of my life! It is too bad that Moers and his Zamonia books aren't more well-known / famous throughout the world! If you can get your hands on one, don't hesitate, it's absolutely worth it.
March 23, 2024
The English version can be found below.
-----------
German Version:
Ein kulinarisches Märchen nach meinem Geschmack! Das Märchen spielt an einem äußerst ungesunden Ort namens Sledwaya, an dem es „nach Äther und Eiter roch, nach Lebertran und Brechmittel, nach Jod und Tod“ (vgl. S. 9). Alles dreht sich dort um Krankheiten, die wie ein Fluch über der Stadt liegen und dieser Fluch heißt ‚Eißpin‘! Die Stadt Seldwaya ist anders als Seldwyla (Stadt bei Gottfried Kellers Werk) wesentlich düsterer und exzentrischer, vor allem wenn es darum geht, was man essen kann 😅
Moers verdreht und ergänzt das Original von Gottfried Keller ‚Spiegel, das Kätzchen‘ so, dass die stellenweise humorvolle Vorlage wirklich urkomisch wird. Er füllt die 50-seitige Originalgeschichte mit Leben und Originalität. Alles bekommt mehr Kontur und Farbe und entwickelt sich in großen Teilen des Buches zu einem echten Abenteuerroman, in welchem Echo, das Kätzchen, die Hauptfigur verkörpert.
Ich würde es wirkliche empfehlen, das Original von Keller davor zu lesen, da es wirkliche eine Bereicherung für den Leseprozess von Moers Werk darstellt. Ich habe en Originaltext leider erst im Nachhinein gelesen und dabei erst festgestellt, wie raffiniert Moers mit diesem Text spielt und wie er bestimmte Punkte an die Spitze treibt 😅 Diese Intertextualität macht nochmals einen großen Teil des Humors aus.
Allein wenn man die Namen des K(r)ätzchens ‚Spiegel‘ (Gottfried Keller) und ‚Echo‘ (Walter Moers) vergleicht, muss man schon schmunzeln und ist zugleich auch von den Feinheiten, mit denen Moers an seine Romane herangeht und andere rezeptiert überrascht. ‚Spiegel‘ und ‚Echo‘ sind beide Abbilder von etwas, einmal ein Bild/Gestalt und einmal Ton. Wenn man hier weiterdenkt, kann man auch auf den Bearbeitungsprozess selbst schließen. Ein Spiegel ist das direkte Abbild von etwas, wohingegen ein Echo immer weiter wiederhallt und irgendwann schwächer wird und immer weniger an den Originalton herankommt, genau wie Bearbeitungen von Originaltexten, die auch immer weiter verändert werden.
„Was gewesen und gegangen
Soll jetzt wieder neu anfangen
Was gegangen und gewesen
Soll im Wundersud genesen
Soll im Topfe wiederkehren
Um die Alchimie zu ehren“ (Der Schrecksenmeister – Walter Moers)
Moers schreibt mit diesem Roman einen wahren Liebesbrief an die Alchemie! Diese wird hier in den verschiedensten Facetten auf ein besondere Weise dargestellt und erfährt durch Eißpins besondere Präzision. Ein Beispiel hierfür sind seine Definitionsformen von Tot sein, da es laut ihm nicht nur eine gibt, sondern „frischtot, gesterntot, vorgesterntot, riechtot, sehriechtot, stinktot und wurmös“ (vgl. S. 149) 😅 😅
Liebe geht ja bekanntlich durch den Magen und dieses kulinarische Märchen erfüllt diesen Zweck zu 100 Prozent. Eines meiner neuen Lieblingsbücher (auch innerhalb der Zamonienbücher)!
Daher => Gesamt: 4,8
Mein persönliches Ranking der Zamonien-Romane bisher:
Platz 1: Die Stadt der Träumenden Bücher (2004) – ⭐5,0+
Platz 2: Die 13 ½ Leben des Käpt’n Blaubär (1999) – ⭐5,0
Platz 3: Rumo & Die Wunder im Dunkeln (2003) – ⭐5,0
Platz 4: Der Schrecksenmeister (2007) – ⭐4,8
Platz 5: Das Labyrinth der Träumenden Bücher (2011) - ⭐4,4
Platz 6: Ensel und Krete (2000) – ⭐4,3
Platz 7: Weihnachten auf der Lindwurmfeste (2018) – ⭐3,3
----------
English version:
A culinary fairy tale to my taste! The fairy tale takes place in an extremely unhealthy place called Sledwaya, where it "smelled of ether and pus, of cod liver oil and emetics, of iodine and death" (p. 9; translated by myself). Everything there revolves around diseases that hover over the town like a curse and this curse is called 'Eißpin'! Unlike Seldwyla (the town in Gottfried Keller's work), the town of Seldwaya is much darker and more eccentric, especially when it comes to what you can eat 😅
Moers twists and adds to Gottfried Keller's original 'Spiegel, das Kätzchen' in such a way that the sometimes humorous original becomes truly hilarious. He fills the 50-page original story with life and originality. Everything takes on more contour and color and develops into a real adventure novel in large parts of the book, in which Echo, the kitten, embodies the main character.
I would really recommend reading the original by Keller beforehand, as it really enriches the reading process of Moers' work. Unfortunately, I only read the original text afterwards and realized how cleverly Moers plays with this text and how he pushes certain points to the extreme 😅 However, this intertextuality makes up a large part of the humour.
Just by comparing the names of the little c(r)at's 'Spiegel (engl. Mirror)' (Gottfried Keller) and 'Echo' (Walter Moers) makes you smile and at the same time you are surprised by the subtleties with which Moers approaches his novels and interprets and adapts other texts. 'Spiegel/Mirror' and 'Echo' are both images of something, once an image/form and once sound. If you think further here, you can also draw conclusions about the editing process itself. A mirror is the direct image of something, whereas an echo continues to reverberate and at some point becomes weaker and less and less similar to the original sound, just like adaptations of original texts, which are also constantly being changed.
"What has been and gone
Shall now begin again
What has been and gone
Shall recover in the miracle brew
Shall return in the pot
To honor alchemy" (Der Schrecksenmeister - Walter Moers; translated by myself)
With this novel, Moers writes a true love letter to alchemy! It is portrayed here in a special way in the most diverse facets and is given particular precision by Eißpin. One example of this is his definition of being dead, as according to him there is not just one, but "fresh-dead, yesterday-dead, the-day-before-yesterday-dead, smelly-dead, smelly-stinky-dead, stinky-dead and wormy" (p. 149; translated by myself) 😅 😅
The way to a man's heart is through his stomach and this culinary fairy tale fulfills this purpose 100 percent. One of my new favorite books (also within the Zamonien books)!
Therefore => Overall: 4.8
My personal ranking of the Zamonia-Novels so far:
Rank 1: The City of Dreaming Books (2004) – ⭐5,0+
Rank 2: The 13 ½ Lives of Captain Bluebear (1999) – ⭐5,0
Rank 3: Rumo & His Miraculous Adventures (2003) – ⭐5,0
Rank 4: The Alchemaster’s Apprentice (2007) – ⭐4,8
Rank 5: The Labyrinth of Dreaming Books (2011) – ⭐4,4
Rank 6: Ensel und Krete (not translated into English) (2000) – ⭐4,3
Rank 7: Weihnachten auf der Lindwurmfeste (not translated into English) (2018) – ⭐3,3
-----------
German Version:
Ein kulinarisches Märchen nach meinem Geschmack! Das Märchen spielt an einem äußerst ungesunden Ort namens Sledwaya, an dem es „nach Äther und Eiter roch, nach Lebertran und Brechmittel, nach Jod und Tod“ (vgl. S. 9). Alles dreht sich dort um Krankheiten, die wie ein Fluch über der Stadt liegen und dieser Fluch heißt ‚Eißpin‘! Die Stadt Seldwaya ist anders als Seldwyla (Stadt bei Gottfried Kellers Werk) wesentlich düsterer und exzentrischer, vor allem wenn es darum geht, was man essen kann 😅
Moers verdreht und ergänzt das Original von Gottfried Keller ‚Spiegel, das Kätzchen‘ so, dass die stellenweise humorvolle Vorlage wirklich urkomisch wird. Er füllt die 50-seitige Originalgeschichte mit Leben und Originalität. Alles bekommt mehr Kontur und Farbe und entwickelt sich in großen Teilen des Buches zu einem echten Abenteuerroman, in welchem Echo, das Kätzchen, die Hauptfigur verkörpert.
Ich würde es wirkliche empfehlen, das Original von Keller davor zu lesen, da es wirkliche eine Bereicherung für den Leseprozess von Moers Werk darstellt. Ich habe en Originaltext leider erst im Nachhinein gelesen und dabei erst festgestellt, wie raffiniert Moers mit diesem Text spielt und wie er bestimmte Punkte an die Spitze treibt 😅 Diese Intertextualität macht nochmals einen großen Teil des Humors aus.
Allein wenn man die Namen des K(r)ätzchens ‚Spiegel‘ (Gottfried Keller) und ‚Echo‘ (Walter Moers) vergleicht, muss man schon schmunzeln und ist zugleich auch von den Feinheiten, mit denen Moers an seine Romane herangeht und andere rezeptiert überrascht. ‚Spiegel‘ und ‚Echo‘ sind beide Abbilder von etwas, einmal ein Bild/Gestalt und einmal Ton. Wenn man hier weiterdenkt, kann man auch auf den Bearbeitungsprozess selbst schließen. Ein Spiegel ist das direkte Abbild von etwas, wohingegen ein Echo immer weiter wiederhallt und irgendwann schwächer wird und immer weniger an den Originalton herankommt, genau wie Bearbeitungen von Originaltexten, die auch immer weiter verändert werden.
„Was gewesen und gegangen
Soll jetzt wieder neu anfangen
Was gegangen und gewesen
Soll im Wundersud genesen
Soll im Topfe wiederkehren
Um die Alchimie zu ehren“ (Der Schrecksenmeister – Walter Moers)
Moers schreibt mit diesem Roman einen wahren Liebesbrief an die Alchemie! Diese wird hier in den verschiedensten Facetten auf ein besondere Weise dargestellt und erfährt durch Eißpins besondere Präzision. Ein Beispiel hierfür sind seine Definitionsformen von Tot sein, da es laut ihm nicht nur eine gibt, sondern „frischtot, gesterntot, vorgesterntot, riechtot, sehriechtot, stinktot und wurmös“ (vgl. S. 149) 😅 😅
Liebe geht ja bekanntlich durch den Magen und dieses kulinarische Märchen erfüllt diesen Zweck zu 100 Prozent. Eines meiner neuen Lieblingsbücher (auch innerhalb der Zamonienbücher)!
Daher => Gesamt: 4,8
Mein persönliches Ranking der Zamonien-Romane bisher:
Platz 1: Die Stadt der Träumenden Bücher (2004) – ⭐5,0+
Platz 2: Die 13 ½ Leben des Käpt’n Blaubär (1999) – ⭐5,0
Platz 3: Rumo & Die Wunder im Dunkeln (2003) – ⭐5,0
Platz 4: Der Schrecksenmeister (2007) – ⭐4,8
Platz 5: Das Labyrinth der Träumenden Bücher (2011) - ⭐4,4
Platz 6: Ensel und Krete (2000) – ⭐4,3
Platz 7: Weihnachten auf der Lindwurmfeste (2018) – ⭐3,3
----------
English version:
A culinary fairy tale to my taste! The fairy tale takes place in an extremely unhealthy place called Sledwaya, where it "smelled of ether and pus, of cod liver oil and emetics, of iodine and death" (p. 9; translated by myself). Everything there revolves around diseases that hover over the town like a curse and this curse is called 'Eißpin'! Unlike Seldwyla (the town in Gottfried Keller's work), the town of Seldwaya is much darker and more eccentric, especially when it comes to what you can eat 😅
Moers twists and adds to Gottfried Keller's original 'Spiegel, das Kätzchen' in such a way that the sometimes humorous original becomes truly hilarious. He fills the 50-page original story with life and originality. Everything takes on more contour and color and develops into a real adventure novel in large parts of the book, in which Echo, the kitten, embodies the main character.
I would really recommend reading the original by Keller beforehand, as it really enriches the reading process of Moers' work. Unfortunately, I only read the original text afterwards and realized how cleverly Moers plays with this text and how he pushes certain points to the extreme 😅 However, this intertextuality makes up a large part of the humour.
Just by comparing the names of the little c(r)at's 'Spiegel (engl. Mirror)' (Gottfried Keller) and 'Echo' (Walter Moers) makes you smile and at the same time you are surprised by the subtleties with which Moers approaches his novels and interprets and adapts other texts. 'Spiegel/Mirror' and 'Echo' are both images of something, once an image/form and once sound. If you think further here, you can also draw conclusions about the editing process itself. A mirror is the direct image of something, whereas an echo continues to reverberate and at some point becomes weaker and less and less similar to the original sound, just like adaptations of original texts, which are also constantly being changed.
"What has been and gone
Shall now begin again
What has been and gone
Shall recover in the miracle brew
Shall return in the pot
To honor alchemy" (Der Schrecksenmeister - Walter Moers; translated by myself)
With this novel, Moers writes a true love letter to alchemy! It is portrayed here in a special way in the most diverse facets and is given particular precision by Eißpin. One example of this is his definition of being dead, as according to him there is not just one, but "fresh-dead, yesterday-dead, the-day-before-yesterday-dead, smelly-dead, smelly-stinky-dead, stinky-dead and wormy" (p. 149; translated by myself) 😅 😅
The way to a man's heart is through his stomach and this culinary fairy tale fulfills this purpose 100 percent. One of my new favorite books (also within the Zamonien books)!
Therefore => Overall: 4.8
My personal ranking of the Zamonia-Novels so far:
Rank 1: The City of Dreaming Books (2004) – ⭐5,0+
Rank 2: The 13 ½ Lives of Captain Bluebear (1999) – ⭐5,0
Rank 3: Rumo & His Miraculous Adventures (2003) – ⭐5,0
Rank 4: The Alchemaster’s Apprentice (2007) – ⭐4,8
Rank 5: The Labyrinth of Dreaming Books (2011) – ⭐4,4
Rank 6: Ensel und Krete (not translated into English) (2000) – ⭐4,3
Rank 7: Weihnachten auf der Lindwurmfeste (not translated into English) (2018) – ⭐3,3
May 6, 2023
I took this book on a recent trip, and it was the perfect vacation read. Eloquent talking cats, fantasy plants, evil villains who are also excellent chefs - well, there was almost no way I wouldn't like The Alchemaster's Apprentice. Walter Moers writes like a cheerful, erudite, and playful madman, and I am here for it.
Echo, a starving Crat (identical to a domestic feline except for being able to understand and speak any language), has struck a bad deal with the alchemaster Ghoolion: in return for being fed, entertained, and pampered, he agrees to be sacrificed at the end of the month for his fat - Crat fat being an alchemically powerful substance.
And thus begins a manic series of events set in Ghoolion's creepy castle. The plot is fairly negligible (Echo makes unusual friends, attempts to get out of his bargain), but the setting and the details are really fun. The castle is home to a colony of Leathermice (bats) and a deadly predator in the basement, Echo learns alchemy (the knowledge is supposedly retained in his fat), and a ghost takes a liking to him. Ghoolion turns out to be a fantastic cook who dishes up remarkable, occasionally hallucinogenic concoctions for Echo, but also has some of the same complaints as ordinary cooks:
I find this especially entertaining because Ghoolion also does all sorts of ghoulish alchemical things with the same precision and passion, such as boiling animals down for their fat, which he stores as spheres in a particular storeroom.
At one point, there's also a subterranean garden of magical plants - fertile ground for Moers's imagination, and one of my favorite scenes in the book (marzipan potatoes and common turdwort, please!).
It's more picaresque than forward moving, but Echo's adventures - drinking wine with the Alchemaster, befriending a Tuwituwu, exploring the castle - are more than enough to carry the story through. There's not a lot of depth here (though Ghoolion has a bit more nuance than strictly necessary for an evil sorcerer), but it's all endlessly inventive and compulsively readable. I think I might have liked this one even more than my previous Moers book The City of Dreaming Books.
Kudos to the translator John Brownjohn - Moers's books were written in German, but thanks to Brownjohn's exceptionally skillful translation, they read perfectly in English, puns and all.
Echo, a starving Crat (identical to a domestic feline except for being able to understand and speak any language), has struck a bad deal with the alchemaster Ghoolion: in return for being fed, entertained, and pampered, he agrees to be sacrificed at the end of the month for his fat - Crat fat being an alchemically powerful substance.
And thus begins a manic series of events set in Ghoolion's creepy castle. The plot is fairly negligible (Echo makes unusual friends, attempts to get out of his bargain), but the setting and the details are really fun. The castle is home to a colony of Leathermice (bats) and a deadly predator in the basement, Echo learns alchemy (the knowledge is supposedly retained in his fat), and a ghost takes a liking to him. Ghoolion turns out to be a fantastic cook who dishes up remarkable, occasionally hallucinogenic concoctions for Echo, but also has some of the same complaints as ordinary cooks:
"That," Ghoolion said in a voice quivering with rage, "is my dungeon for useless kitchen utensils. There's one in every kitchen worthy of the name. Its inmates are kept there like especially dangerous patients in a mental institution."
He reached into the cupboard and brought out an odd-looking implement.
"What cook," he cried, "does not possess such a gadget, which can sculpt a radish into a miniature rose? I acquired it at a fair in one of those moments of mental derangement when life without a miniature-rose-cutting gadget seemed unimaginable."
He hurled the thing back into the darkness and brought out another.
"Or this here, which enables one to cut potatoes into spirals five yards long! Or this, a press for juicing turnips! Or this, a frying pan for producing rectangular omelettes!"
I find this especially entertaining because Ghoolion also does all sorts of ghoulish alchemical things with the same precision and passion, such as boiling animals down for their fat, which he stores as spheres in a particular storeroom.
At one point, there's also a subterranean garden of magical plants - fertile ground for Moers's imagination, and one of my favorite scenes in the book (marzipan potatoes and common turdwort, please!).
"Mobile plants are becoming increasingly popular with people who find normal plants boring but are too lazy to keep a pet. Personally, I think they should be declared a protected species. It's cruelty to plants to allow such people to own them. They're bound to start teaching them tricks."
"Could they do that?" asked Echo.
"The Uggly studied her fingernails. "Well, I must confess I taught that Trampoline Fern down there a little trick. The temptation was too great."
She clicked her fingers. The Trampoline Fern withdrew its roots from the flowerpot, climbed out of it, turned a somersault and climbed back in again.
It's more picaresque than forward moving, but Echo's adventures - drinking wine with the Alchemaster, befriending a Tuwituwu, exploring the castle - are more than enough to carry the story through. There's not a lot of depth here (though Ghoolion has a bit more nuance than strictly necessary for an evil sorcerer), but it's all endlessly inventive and compulsively readable. I think I might have liked this one even more than my previous Moers book The City of Dreaming Books.
Kudos to the translator John Brownjohn - Moers's books were written in German, but thanks to Brownjohn's exceptionally skillful translation, they read perfectly in English, puns and all.
November 14, 2009
The back of this book has a review by the New York Times Book Review with the words "Cheerfully insane..."
When I started this story I just didn't know if I could get into it. Walter Moers imagination is off the charts - it felt like I was being sat down and told a fairy tale with names being made up left and right. But then.. I was introduced to Anguish Candles.
Not normal candles, mind you - these candles suffer when they burn.. and they inch along..and they moan. And they are never put out of their torment.. I was fascinated and couldn't stop reading (I'm laughing even as I type this).
Through the book I was introduced to the Tuwituwu, Theodore T. Theodore (the author made note of Echo the Crat not wanting to find out what the T. was for.. possible .. Theodore?) who speaks.. oddly (read it to find out how). Then, there are the Trees of Nutledge. Yes. Nutledge. Not Knowledge. Similar though! Vlad the Seven Hundred and Seventy-Fourth was a fun Leathermouse to meet, and oh.. the descriptions of the Zamonian food created - the essense of tomato consumme with the dumpling of salmon meat.
And then, there are the folk tales told by the Alchemaster. Every single time it felt like I was receiving a shock when he'd finish one - because they are not typical folk tales!
If you pick up this book to read, give it an honest, thorough chance. It took me a few chapters to really get into the spirit of things, but that's because it's so quirkly and so inventive I had to rearrange the way I was thinking to really start enjoying it.
Bravo to Walter Moers for a thoroughly entertaining tale.
When I started this story I just didn't know if I could get into it. Walter Moers imagination is off the charts - it felt like I was being sat down and told a fairy tale with names being made up left and right. But then.. I was introduced to Anguish Candles.
Not normal candles, mind you - these candles suffer when they burn.. and they inch along..and they moan. And they are never put out of their torment.. I was fascinated and couldn't stop reading (I'm laughing even as I type this).
Through the book I was introduced to the Tuwituwu, Theodore T. Theodore (the author made note of Echo the Crat not wanting to find out what the T. was for.. possible .. Theodore?) who speaks.. oddly (read it to find out how). Then, there are the Trees of Nutledge. Yes. Nutledge. Not Knowledge. Similar though! Vlad the Seven Hundred and Seventy-Fourth was a fun Leathermouse to meet, and oh.. the descriptions of the Zamonian food created - the essense of tomato consumme with the dumpling of salmon meat.
And then, there are the folk tales told by the Alchemaster. Every single time it felt like I was receiving a shock when he'd finish one - because they are not typical folk tales!
If you pick up this book to read, give it an honest, thorough chance. It took me a few chapters to really get into the spirit of things, but that's because it's so quirkly and so inventive I had to rearrange the way I was thinking to really start enjoying it.
Bravo to Walter Moers for a thoroughly entertaining tale.
November 21, 2017
Wurde irgendwann langweilig...
January 14, 2024
Izanuela Anazazi bekommt einen ganz besonderen Platz in meinem Herzen <3 Hatte am Anfang etwas Probleme reinzukommen, aber am Ende hat mich die Geschichte doch bekommen :)
January 29, 2010
Another winner by Walter Moers! This book follows Echo the Crat (a cat that can speak all creature's languages) as he is saved from starvation by the Alchemaster, Ghoolion. Ghoolion's proposal is to treat Echo to the most amazing culinary treats in order to fatten him up to then, well end his life to take his fat.
Not only does Echo find out a lot about Ghoolion and his love(s) but also about the inhabitants of Ghoolion's castle and the secrets of the house itself. His (one-month) life's mission becomes to outwit Ghoolion and escape with his life and fat intact. Amazing and witty.
Not only does Echo find out a lot about Ghoolion and his love(s) but also about the inhabitants of Ghoolion's castle and the secrets of the house itself. His (one-month) life's mission becomes to outwit Ghoolion and escape with his life and fat intact. Amazing and witty.
September 18, 2017
"Oben ist unten und hässlich ist schön."
October 3, 2021
One of the things that irked me about the Jedi in the Prequel material is the questions that never get fully addressed. For instance, they go running around the galaxy finding Force sensitive children which they recruit and use as child soliders. And if you were say someone like Shmi, and a Jedi said, "yo, your kid will have three squares and a roof" - would you really say no considering what you can offer him is a life of slavery? I mean for poor people in the galaxy far, far away it seems like a good deal.
In this book, Echo finds himself in a similar situation. The poor guy is staving to death and a deal is offered - food in exchange for his fat in a month's time. And to get his fat, he must be killed. Moers story starts on this unfair and unequal terms but moves into the power of connections and friendships as well as, as always in Zamonia, the power of words.
There is humor and a whole bunch of social commentary. It really is a book about the power of community or the lack of power a community has if it choses.
It also is about the power of food.
And Leathermice, which no one understands or knows. Not even the Leathermice.
Also Moers nails cats.
Read for the Black Cat square.
In this book, Echo finds himself in a similar situation. The poor guy is staving to death and a deal is offered - food in exchange for his fat in a month's time. And to get his fat, he must be killed. Moers story starts on this unfair and unequal terms but moves into the power of connections and friendships as well as, as always in Zamonia, the power of words.
There is humor and a whole bunch of social commentary. It really is a book about the power of community or the lack of power a community has if it choses.
It also is about the power of food.
And Leathermice, which no one understands or knows. Not even the Leathermice.
Also Moers nails cats.
Read for the Black Cat square.
January 24, 2022
Questo libro era tra i miei preferiti una dozzina d'anni fa. Ora devo dire che non è neppure tra i migliori dello stesso autore, dato che la trama si muove in modo eccessivamente casuale (nulla avviene effettivamente per mano del protagonista, o quasi). Ma, per quanto mi riguarda, resta un libro geniale.
Walter Moers, ne L'accalappiastreghe, mette in scena una vicenda che rispetta unità di tempo (un mese) e luogo (la città di Sledwaya) aristoteliche: una sorta di gatto parlante, il cratto Eco, è salvato da morte certa da un alchimista privo di scrupoli, Malfrosto, che si impegna a nutrirlo per un mese in cambio del suo grasso (e quindi della sua vita) allo scadere di quel termine. Il resto del romanzo è un tripudio di ricette che Malfrosto propina a Eco e di incontri stravaganti e grotteschi.
Punto di forza, oltre al gusto barocco e all'inventiva dell'autore, lo strano legame, di amicizia e inimicizia insieme, che si crea tra i due personaggi principali.
Difficile dire altro. Sappiate solo che ne vale la pena: vi divertirete senz'altro.
Walter Moers, ne L'accalappiastreghe, mette in scena una vicenda che rispetta unità di tempo (un mese) e luogo (la città di Sledwaya) aristoteliche: una sorta di gatto parlante, il cratto Eco, è salvato da morte certa da un alchimista privo di scrupoli, Malfrosto, che si impegna a nutrirlo per un mese in cambio del suo grasso (e quindi della sua vita) allo scadere di quel termine. Il resto del romanzo è un tripudio di ricette che Malfrosto propina a Eco e di incontri stravaganti e grotteschi.
Punto di forza, oltre al gusto barocco e all'inventiva dell'autore, lo strano legame, di amicizia e inimicizia insieme, che si crea tra i due personaggi principali.
Difficile dire altro. Sappiate solo che ne vale la pena: vi divertirete senz'altro.
September 10, 2015
I was walking slowly through the Fantasy stacks at my favorite library, caressing the spines of the Walter Moers as I came to them, when I stopped in surprise and nearly fell over myself trying to snatch this book off the shelf before anyone else could. You see, not enough of Moers' books have been translated, in my opinion, and I have been bemoaning that fact since the last of his that I read - SO!! Joy! Joy! This was a bonus I hadn't expected.
And I was not disappointed. I loved the Crat.
Moers' imagination is still every bit as wonderful and varied as ever, and this book hold to the plot fairly tight as well, which is nice, though not essential to my reading pleasure.
Moers is weird. He's unique. He is so refreshing. He's one of those writers that makes me want to exercise my imagination muscle more - just to see what would happen.
The world needs more of Moers.
And I was not disappointed. I loved the Crat.
Moers' imagination is still every bit as wonderful and varied as ever, and this book hold to the plot fairly tight as well, which is nice, though not essential to my reading pleasure.
Moers is weird. He's unique. He is so refreshing. He's one of those writers that makes me want to exercise my imagination muscle more - just to see what would happen.
The world needs more of Moers.
December 19, 2011
Giving this a pre-emptive 5 stars, though I am not done yet. Reviews call this a "children's book for adults," and I don't think that's too far from the truth. What makes it "adult" is not large-scale political troubles or the horrors of the human condition a la The Guy Who Wrote Wicked and Other Stuff I Don't Particularly Care For, but a willingness to go to places the Brothers Grimm might go, and the modern fortitude to make fun of their absurdity.
It's the sort of thing I'd love to read out loud to another adult, complete with silly voices. I'm kind of in love.
It's the sort of thing I'd love to read out loud to another adult, complete with silly voices. I'm kind of in love.
January 27, 2024
I was wondering today if I would enjoy the Zamonia Novels nearly as much if they were narrated by someone other than the delightful Bronson Pinchot. He is willing to do ridiculous things with his voice that must have the engineer in the recording studio on the floor laughing!
This book in the series is about a poor little crat who makes a deal with an evil alchemaster, who will cook delectable meals for him for one month and them render him down and take his fat to be used in a potion.
I would tell you some of the wonderful creatures you will meet during this adventure, but my spell check function is already having a nervous breakdown.
Let's just say, this tale is a treat.
This book in the series is about a poor little crat who makes a deal with an evil alchemaster, who will cook delectable meals for him for one month and them render him down and take his fat to be used in a potion.
I would tell you some of the wonderful creatures you will meet during this adventure, but my spell check function is already having a nervous breakdown.
Let's just say, this tale is a treat.
August 23, 2020
Walter Moers hat wieder einmal einen absolut originellen, fantasievollen und über alle Maßen unterhaltsamen Roman geschrieben. Dieses Mal über eine halbverhungerte Kratze namens Echo (nicht Katze! ;-)), die einen Vertrag mit einem Alchimisten, dem Schrecksenmeister Succubius Eißpin, schließt. Der Inhalt des Vertrags: Eißpin füttert Echo bis zum nächsten Schrecksenvollmond mit allen denkbaren Leckereien und bietet ihm auch ansonsten die bestmöglichen Lebensbedingungen, im Gegenzug darf Eißpin Echo töten, um sein Fett zu verwerten. Dass Echo sich nicht kampflos seinem Schicksal beugt, nachdem er zu Kräften gekommen ist, ist wohl klar. Wir folgen ihm auf seinem schwierigen, abenteuerlichen Weg, der mit so einigen Überraschungen aufwartet.
Dieser Roman hat mir tatsächlich noch besser gefallen als "Die Stadt der träumenden Bücher". Walter Moers legt hier noch eine Schippe drauf und kommt mit so vielen kreativen Einfällen um die Ecke, dass man gar nicht weiß, wo man hinsehen soll. Sein bildlicher Schreibstil tut sein Übrigens zum Lesevergnügen. Dieses Buch ist spannend und lustig, bunt und actionreich, und macht einfach nur Spaß! Von mir eine ganz klare Leseempfehlung!
Dieser Roman hat mir tatsächlich noch besser gefallen als "Die Stadt der träumenden Bücher". Walter Moers legt hier noch eine Schippe drauf und kommt mit so vielen kreativen Einfällen um die Ecke, dass man gar nicht weiß, wo man hinsehen soll. Sein bildlicher Schreibstil tut sein Übrigens zum Lesevergnügen. Dieses Buch ist spannend und lustig, bunt und actionreich, und macht einfach nur Spaß! Von mir eine ganz klare Leseempfehlung!
March 1, 2015
Es ist nicht mein liebster Zamonienroman, aber er war trotzdem natürlich mal wieder super. Vor allen Dingen war das Ende mal wieder super spektakulär und einfach nur schön. Vor allem auch die intertexutellen Bezüge machen den Reiz dieses Buches aus und auch die Nachwörter des Autors und des Übersetzers sind zum Schreien komisch und absolut lesenswert!
May 28, 2018
4.5 but so deserved. one of my favourites of walter moers' work tbh.
im actually writing my thesis on this one and feel so glad that i did like it and wont have to write 12 pages about a book i cant stand...;)
review coming up soon, im just a bit too busy to keep up with all the reviews i want/have to write.
im actually writing my thesis on this one and feel so glad that i did like it and wont have to write 12 pages about a book i cant stand...;)
review coming up soon, im just a bit too busy to keep up with all the reviews i want/have to write.
January 20, 2021
Der Schrecksenmeister ist erst zum Ende hin spannend geworden, aber ich glaube, das war bei der Stadt der träumenden Bücher auch schon so. Es war kein schlechtes Buch, aber auch kein überragendes. Aber die Illustrationen finde ich total schön.
May 1, 2013
Every new-to-me Walter Moers book I pick up immediately becomes my new favorite Walter Moers book, and thus one of my favorite books, full stop. This has happened ever since I first stumbled across a somewhat battered copy of Rumo and his Miraculous Adventures several years ago at my local public library and wondered what the hell was going on with that. One is always going on with the mix of over-the-top imaginative fantasy, adorable illustrations, sophisticated plotting and outrageous wordplay that is Walter Moers. Oh, do I love this man. And his translator into English, the wonderfully named John Brownjohn, who has the unenviable task of turning all of those invented and ordinary compound German nouns and verbs into something intelligible in English without losing any of the original's wit and charm and, as far as I can tell, succeeds brilliantly.
Or at any rate, if Brownjohn is in any way not hitting Moers' mark, then I'm not sure I could handle more Moers. As such. Feel free to throw something at me now.
The Alchemaster's Apprentice is another Zamonia book, Zamonia being, of course, a lost continent that once took up most of the Atlantic Ocean and was home not only to sentient and literate dinosaurs who achieved a very high standard of culture indeed (at least a high Middle Ages standard), but to a myriad of other astonishing creatures as well, including the new-to-this-fifth-novel Crat. A Crat being a sort of cat who can speak every language, human or animal, in the known world, and whose body fat is an alchemist's, well, I would say an alchemist's philosopher's stone, but everyone knows that the philosopher's stone is the alchemists' philosopher's stone, so something just short of that. At any rate, very desirable indeed.
Enter one Succubius Ghoolion*, titular Alchemaster, who is a sort of Jean-Baptiste Greouille through Moers' funhouse mirror in that, like the perfidious perfumer of Suskind's most famous novel, he is obsessed with capturing the essences of things in the most durable possible form, that form being the rendered fat of rare and fabulous creatures like Crats. Of whom Ghoolion suspects our adorable little hero, Echo the Kitty Crat, to possibly be the very last one. Um.
What follows from this state of affairs is another deliciously daffy Moers adventure -- perhaps the most delicious of all because, when Ghoolion finds Echo, Echo is starving to death and has no fat on him, but Ghoolion is a culinary genius and so sets about fattening his foundling in outlandishly opulent ways. If one doesn't drool through at least a few of these chapters, one is obviously some kind of icky ascetic who subsists on room temperature water and celery sticks or something.** Echo befriends a cyclopean owl-type thing who speaks in spoonerisms (Brownjohn must have had a heck of a time with those. He needs all of the awards for translating. All of them, do you understand me?) and is dedicated to helping Echo escape the terrible fate that awaits him, learns a lot of alchemical secrets, eats a lot of absurdly delicious food, and develops a charmingly weird relationship with Ghoolion in the process.
Along the way he picks up some other weird allies, such as a Cooked Ghost (which Echo helps to cook himself as part of his education), a couple thousand Leathermice (like extraordinarily ugly vampire bats with extremely strange habits of thought. Nobody understands Leathermice, dude. Not even Leathermice), and the last remaining Uggly in the city -- an Uggly being, of course, a sort of gypsy practitioner of a natural/homeopathic/herbal medicine that is pretty much the absolute antithesis of what Ghoolion does. Who despite Ghoolion's long history of persecution of Ugglies in every horrible way imaginable, has a crush on Ghoolion. Yeah, it's complicated.
It all builds to a thrilling and insane climax, Moers' best yet! So yeah, The Alchemaster's Apprentice is my new favorite Walter Moers. At least until the next one.
But yeah, I'm still puzzled about that roast wildfowl Echo was sort of tricked into eating mid-story. That's a head-scratcher of a loose end. But Echo does spend a lot of this novel tripping balls on some hallucinogenic meal or other... so... umm... yeah, I've got nothing.
*The character names are part of the fun of Moers, most of them being anagrams of popular authors' names, though so far I can't figure out whose name became Succubius Ghoolion, and I have tried. Oh, have I tried. But I'm a poor hand at anagram solving.
**Seriously, the food porn in this book is completely off the hook. Imagine Lewis Carroll and China Mieville collaborating on a cookbook and you might just get a hint of the flavor. WOW.
Or at any rate, if Brownjohn is in any way not hitting Moers' mark, then I'm not sure I could handle more Moers. As such. Feel free to throw something at me now.
The Alchemaster's Apprentice is another Zamonia book, Zamonia being, of course, a lost continent that once took up most of the Atlantic Ocean and was home not only to sentient and literate dinosaurs who achieved a very high standard of culture indeed (at least a high Middle Ages standard), but to a myriad of other astonishing creatures as well, including the new-to-this-fifth-novel Crat. A Crat being a sort of cat who can speak every language, human or animal, in the known world, and whose body fat is an alchemist's, well, I would say an alchemist's philosopher's stone, but everyone knows that the philosopher's stone is the alchemists' philosopher's stone, so something just short of that. At any rate, very desirable indeed.
Enter one Succubius Ghoolion*, titular Alchemaster, who is a sort of Jean-Baptiste Greouille through Moers' funhouse mirror in that, like the perfidious perfumer of Suskind's most famous novel, he is obsessed with capturing the essences of things in the most durable possible form, that form being the rendered fat of rare and fabulous creatures like Crats. Of whom Ghoolion suspects our adorable little hero, Echo the Kitty Crat, to possibly be the very last one. Um.
What follows from this state of affairs is another deliciously daffy Moers adventure -- perhaps the most delicious of all because, when Ghoolion finds Echo, Echo is starving to death and has no fat on him, but Ghoolion is a culinary genius and so sets about fattening his foundling in outlandishly opulent ways. If one doesn't drool through at least a few of these chapters, one is obviously some kind of icky ascetic who subsists on room temperature water and celery sticks or something.** Echo befriends a cyclopean owl-type thing who speaks in spoonerisms (Brownjohn must have had a heck of a time with those. He needs all of the awards for translating. All of them, do you understand me?) and is dedicated to helping Echo escape the terrible fate that awaits him, learns a lot of alchemical secrets, eats a lot of absurdly delicious food, and develops a charmingly weird relationship with Ghoolion in the process.
Along the way he picks up some other weird allies, such as a Cooked Ghost (which Echo helps to cook himself as part of his education), a couple thousand Leathermice (like extraordinarily ugly vampire bats with extremely strange habits of thought. Nobody understands Leathermice, dude. Not even Leathermice), and the last remaining Uggly in the city -- an Uggly being, of course, a sort of gypsy practitioner of a natural/homeopathic/herbal medicine that is pretty much the absolute antithesis of what Ghoolion does. Who despite Ghoolion's long history of persecution of Ugglies in every horrible way imaginable, has a crush on Ghoolion. Yeah, it's complicated.
It all builds to a thrilling and insane climax, Moers' best yet! So yeah, The Alchemaster's Apprentice is my new favorite Walter Moers. At least until the next one.
But yeah, I'm still puzzled about that roast wildfowl Echo was sort of tricked into eating mid-story. That's a head-scratcher of a loose end. But Echo does spend a lot of this novel tripping balls on some hallucinogenic meal or other... so... umm... yeah, I've got nothing.
*The character names are part of the fun of Moers, most of them being anagrams of popular authors' names, though so far I can't figure out whose name became Succubius Ghoolion, and I have tried. Oh, have I tried. But I'm a poor hand at anagram solving.
**Seriously, the food porn in this book is completely off the hook. Imagine Lewis Carroll and China Mieville collaborating on a cookbook and you might just get a hint of the flavor. WOW.
December 4, 2022
An almost-literal feast for fantasy lovers!
Some years back, I read two books by Walter Moers: 'The 13 1/2 Lives of Captain Bluebear' and 'The City of Dreaming Books' - both of them long and involved books, as I recall, and I enjoyed them immensely. To be honest, my reading tastes don't particularly run towards fantasy but I discovered there's something about the sensibility of Moers' work that appeals to me. He doesn't write for children but he does write for certain adolescents, and he definitely writes for adults. It seems that, if I'm going to read fantasy, it needs to have a certain... angle. Or, shall we say, 'bent'.
I'm not sure I could give a fair or adequate synopsis of 'TAA' - in fact, trying might prove a disservice. There are non-stop delights in store for the reader and I wouldn't want to spoil them. The title had put me in mind of Disney's 'Fantasia'; the memorable sequence involving Mickey Mouse going way overboard and wayward with a master sorcerer's power. (All those brooms! All that water!) But there is only the smallest vestige of that in 'TAA'.
Simply put, it is the story of Echo, a Crat (an advanced cat-creature who speaks all languages and can retain the world of knowledge without necessarily understanding all that he retains). As the story opens, Echo has just lost his home and is hungry. It is in this state that he meets Ghoolion, the feared Alchemaster who holds sway over the entire town of Zamonia, the story's setting. The two strike a bargain since there is something the Alchemaster needs for his current experiment: Echo's fat.
In one sense, Ghoolion resembles the silent sorcerer of the Disney film: he is fierce and intimidating. But he's much more than that. Moers' depiction of the wizard is (to put it mildly) a complex one - but, then, it's a complex book; complex in the sense of the seemingly endless amounts of invention and complication.
I tend to read fast - but Moers seemed to be regularly 'telling' me to slow down. I often had to put the book down in order to absorb / savor chapters I had just read. Almost every chapter is relatively short - yet, remarkably, each one is somehow full in scope and I often needed to just sit back and ruminate on what I'd just read. (~ which explains my opening remark about the 'feast', although that's a dual reference; there is certainly a whole lot of rich detail about food!)
Of particular importance - and delight - is the book's conclusion; among the most intricate conclusions I've ever read. Normally, a story of this type is likely to build to a single, cataclysmic climax... but not 'TAA'; its extensive wrap-up - at times, marvelously clever - is full of 'gotcha' moments that spiral the reader along.
Having just read Edward Sorel's wonderful book about the life of Mary Astor, I was pleased to fall into another work for which the author did his own illustrations. Even if Sorel's drawings appeal more to me personally, Moers is a fine illustrator - with a sharp sense of the macabre. However, though Sorel is also a fantasist (in a sense), Moers' imagination seems limitless. He leaps off into areas that are as mind-bending as they are unexpected.
He's also quite funny - which becomes more apparent in the second half of this book. The darkness of this novel would, at some point, become overwhelming if it weren't for the judicious, periodic inclusion of humorous whimsy. Characters come out with hysterical throwaway lines at just the right moments.
By now, I'm a real Moers fan. He has a few more novels waiting for me. I'll take a break for now... but I'll be ready to return before long.
Some years back, I read two books by Walter Moers: 'The 13 1/2 Lives of Captain Bluebear' and 'The City of Dreaming Books' - both of them long and involved books, as I recall, and I enjoyed them immensely. To be honest, my reading tastes don't particularly run towards fantasy but I discovered there's something about the sensibility of Moers' work that appeals to me. He doesn't write for children but he does write for certain adolescents, and he definitely writes for adults. It seems that, if I'm going to read fantasy, it needs to have a certain... angle. Or, shall we say, 'bent'.
I'm not sure I could give a fair or adequate synopsis of 'TAA' - in fact, trying might prove a disservice. There are non-stop delights in store for the reader and I wouldn't want to spoil them. The title had put me in mind of Disney's 'Fantasia'; the memorable sequence involving Mickey Mouse going way overboard and wayward with a master sorcerer's power. (All those brooms! All that water!) But there is only the smallest vestige of that in 'TAA'.
Simply put, it is the story of Echo, a Crat (an advanced cat-creature who speaks all languages and can retain the world of knowledge without necessarily understanding all that he retains). As the story opens, Echo has just lost his home and is hungry. It is in this state that he meets Ghoolion, the feared Alchemaster who holds sway over the entire town of Zamonia, the story's setting. The two strike a bargain since there is something the Alchemaster needs for his current experiment: Echo's fat.
In one sense, Ghoolion resembles the silent sorcerer of the Disney film: he is fierce and intimidating. But he's much more than that. Moers' depiction of the wizard is (to put it mildly) a complex one - but, then, it's a complex book; complex in the sense of the seemingly endless amounts of invention and complication.
I tend to read fast - but Moers seemed to be regularly 'telling' me to slow down. I often had to put the book down in order to absorb / savor chapters I had just read. Almost every chapter is relatively short - yet, remarkably, each one is somehow full in scope and I often needed to just sit back and ruminate on what I'd just read. (~ which explains my opening remark about the 'feast', although that's a dual reference; there is certainly a whole lot of rich detail about food!)
Of particular importance - and delight - is the book's conclusion; among the most intricate conclusions I've ever read. Normally, a story of this type is likely to build to a single, cataclysmic climax... but not 'TAA'; its extensive wrap-up - at times, marvelously clever - is full of 'gotcha' moments that spiral the reader along.
Having just read Edward Sorel's wonderful book about the life of Mary Astor, I was pleased to fall into another work for which the author did his own illustrations. Even if Sorel's drawings appeal more to me personally, Moers is a fine illustrator - with a sharp sense of the macabre. However, though Sorel is also a fantasist (in a sense), Moers' imagination seems limitless. He leaps off into areas that are as mind-bending as they are unexpected.
He's also quite funny - which becomes more apparent in the second half of this book. The darkness of this novel would, at some point, become overwhelming if it weren't for the judicious, periodic inclusion of humorous whimsy. Characters come out with hysterical throwaway lines at just the right moments.
By now, I'm a real Moers fan. He has a few more novels waiting for me. I'll take a break for now... but I'll be ready to return before long.
January 7, 2018
Since Rumo & His Miraculous Adventures featured a protagonist that was (essentially) a sentient dog, it feels entirely appropriate that Moers wrote a book that stars (essentially) a sentient cat as well.
Technically, Echo is a Crat, not a cat, which basically means a cat that has the ability to understand and speak languages. But make no mistake: this is the first novel I’ve read where the protagonist was a cat, and it was everything I could have wished for in that respect. This was helped along by Moers’ illustrations, which were, as usual, superb. This image might be one of my favorite book illustrations ever.
In this book, Echo the Crat is starving on the streets, when the town’s resident tyrannical Alchemaster Ghoolion happens across him. As Ghoolion needs Crat fat for some of his sinister alchemical experiments, they strike a bargain. Echo, who was days from dying of starvation anyway, will get a month of full bellies and gastronomic delights such as he’d never dreamed up. And after a month of fattening him up, Ghoolion will kill him and render him down.
Sincechemistry alchemy is cooking and cooking chemistry alchemy, Ghoolion keeps his end of the bargain. Along the way, Ghoolion tells Echo all sorts of secrets of cooking, as well as alchemy - he’s not reluctant to share his secret knowledge with Echo, because who is he going to tell? But as the days tick down, Echo naturally seeks a way out of the bargain he has made.
I’ve previously described Moers’ The City of Dreaming Books as a love letter to reading, and books in general. The Alchemaster’s Apprentice is similar, but it’s a love letter to food and eating. It’s of course packed full of the Hithchhiker’s Guide-esque asides and stories of Zamonia that all of Moers’ books have. It’s not the best of the Zamonia books, and I wouldn’t really recommend it to someone who hasn’t read and loved some of the others, but it was still very good.
And the protagonist is a cat. This is a point that bears repeating.
Technically, Echo is a Crat, not a cat, which basically means a cat that has the ability to understand and speak languages. But make no mistake: this is the first novel I’ve read where the protagonist was a cat, and it was everything I could have wished for in that respect. This was helped along by Moers’ illustrations, which were, as usual, superb. This image might be one of my favorite book illustrations ever.
In this book, Echo the Crat is starving on the streets, when the town’s resident tyrannical Alchemaster Ghoolion happens across him. As Ghoolion needs Crat fat for some of his sinister alchemical experiments, they strike a bargain. Echo, who was days from dying of starvation anyway, will get a month of full bellies and gastronomic delights such as he’d never dreamed up. And after a month of fattening him up, Ghoolion will kill him and render him down.
Since
I’ve previously described Moers’ The City of Dreaming Books as a love letter to reading, and books in general. The Alchemaster’s Apprentice is similar, but it’s a love letter to food and eating. It’s of course packed full of the Hithchhiker’s Guide-esque asides and stories of Zamonia that all of Moers’ books have. It’s not the best of the Zamonia books, and I wouldn’t really recommend it to someone who hasn’t read and loved some of the others, but it was still very good.
And the protagonist is a cat. This is a point that bears repeating.
December 17, 2021
Es gab für mich zwar kleine Unstimmigkeiten, aber ich wurde so gut unterhalten, dass ich darüber hinweg sehen kann. Der Autor spielt wunderbar mit dem Realen (Literatur, Natur) und baut Bezüge in sein Buch dazu ein. Daneben Geschichten in Geschichten, wie etwas Märchen, die wunderbar erzählt werden. Mir hat die Geschichte des Weins gut gefallen. Die Figuren haben im Großteil mein Herz erobert, auch mitunter unterschiedlichen Philosophien. Ja, niemand versteht die Ledermäuse. Und Echo ist ein toller Hauptcharakter. Er ist kein Held. Er wird sich im Lauf der Geschichte bewusst, dass sein junges Leben keine reine Veste trägt. Überaus sympathisch. Bleibt nur zu hoffen, dass er auf seiner Reise nicht auf eine alte Bekannte trifft.
February 25, 2024
🇬🇧 English review below ⬇
........................................................................................
Walter Moers ist eine Größe der deutschen phantastischen Literatur. Jeder, der sich hier bei uns irgendwie mit diesem Genre beschäftigt, wird unweigerlich irgendwann auf diesen Namen stoßen. Seine Bücher führen Bestsellerlisten an und haben einige Preise eingeheimst und nun komme ich und gestehe: Ich hatte bisher noch nie etwas von ihm gelesen 🙈 Das sollte sich dieses Jahr ändern, meintet auch ihr und habt prompt, das einzige Buch von ihm, das ich besitze auf die Friend’s Choice Liste gesetzt. Euer Wunsch, ist mein Befehl, doch wie hat mir meine erster Moers gefallen?
Von einem Krätzchen, das auszog sein Fett zu retten
Bevor ich mit dem Lesen ebgann hatte ich ein bisschen zu dem Roman recherchiert. Ursprünglich, um herauszufinden, ob ich ihn ohne Vorkenntnisse anderer Zamonien Bände lesen könnte, stieß ich schon bald auf die Information, dass der Roman von Gottfried Kellers Spiegel, das Kätzchen inspiriert ist, ja man könnte es bereits als Adaption bezeichnen. Da wurde ich nun hellhörig und beschloss mir zuerst das Original zu Gemüte zu führen, was ich in Form eines Hörbuchs auch tat.
Vollgepackt mit diesem neuen literarischen Wissen (die Novelle ist übrigens sehr empfehlenswert) begann ich dann mit dem Schrecksenmeister und kam natürlich nicht umhin, Parallelen zu Kellers Werk zu suchen.
Die Grundhandlung ist definitiv dieselbe, sodass man die zamonische Variante durchaus als Adaption verstehen kann: Ein vom Glück verlassenes Kätzchen oder in unserem Fall Krätzchen trifft hungernd auf den bösen Zauberer Eißpin. Um dem nahenden Hungertod zu entgehen, geht das Krätzchen einen unheilvollen Pakt mit ihm ein: Der Zauberer wird das Krätzchen mästen, ihm Unterschlupf bieten und pflegen, doch im Gegenzug bekommt er, wenn die Zeit reif und das Krätzchen gemästet ist, dessen Fett (was dieses natürlich leider nicht unbeschadet abgeben kann). Soweit, so ähnlich. Mit dem Vorwissen von Kellers Vorlage macht das Erkunden der zamonischen Variante viel Spaß, wobei Moers natürlich, wie ich es bei seinem Ruf erwartet hatte, so viel mehr aus der Novelle macht, als sie einfach nach Zamonien zu verlegen.
Für mich war es ja der allererste Ausflug nach Zamonien, doch ich hatte überhaupt keine Probleme mich in der Welt zurechtzufinden. Vorteil ist hier, dass der Schrecksenmeister einen eher beschränkten Handlungsraum hat. Die ganze Geschichte spielt in der Stadt Sledwaya und der Großteil der Handlung im Schloss von Eißpin. Das Buch ist in meinen Augen daher ideal, um Moers Stil kennenzulernen, ohne gleich von ganz Zamonien erschlagen zu werden. Und dieses kennenlernen lohnt sich!
Da ist zu einem Moers Sprache, die mich in ihrer Gewitztheit und der Vorliebe für Sprachwitze sehr an Michael Endes Wunschpunsch erinnert hat, ein Buch, das ich liebe und auch bei Moers beeindruckt mich die Kunst, mit der er alle Kapriolen der deutschen Sprache ausnutzt und mit ihnen spielt. Herrlich. Insbesondere, weil er dies mit viel Humor tut. Ich hörte ja schon vorher, dass Moers Bücher großartigen Humor besitzen und kann dies nun selber bestätigen. Sei es, wenn es um Fjodor F. Fjodor, den einäugigen Schuhu geht, der ganz stolz Fremdwörter völlig falsch nutzt, die Schreckse Izanuela mit strenger Käsediät und stolze Besitzerin eines Käsemuseums, die zweitausendvierhundertachtundreißig Ledermäuse (die sich Echo alle einzeln vorstellen) und und und. Man kommt aus dem schmunzeln gar nicht mehr raus udn das Lesen macht wirklich vergnügen. Überhaupt gibt es nur ganz wenige Autoren auf dieser Welt, die solch einen Ideenreichtum und Liebe zum Detail besitzen. Hinter jeder Ecke warten neue fantasievolle Geschöpfe, neue Wunder und so wie Echo vom Schrecksenmeister die abenteuerlichsten Gerichte serviert bekommt, entdeckt man als LeserIn auf jeder Seite neues und phantastisches.
Ich weiß, die Rezension droht viel zu lang zu werden, aber neben dem Stil von Walter Moers, möchte ich ach noch ein paar Worte zur Handlung verlieren. Wie bereits erwähnt, orientiert sich die grobe Handlung an Kellers Novelle, doch wo im Original das Kätzchen zügig aus eigener Kraft den Zauberer überlistet, braucht Echo deutlich mehr Hilfe, trifft dafür aber eben die tollsten Gestalten. Einziger Wermutstropen dabei war für mich, dass manche dieser Begegnungen doch eins, zwei Seiten kürzer hätten ausfallen können. Ich hatte gerade im letzten Drittel das Gefühl, dass sich Echo viel im Kreis dreht und hätte mir doch gewünscht, dass er ein bisschen eigenständiger und zügiger handelt.
Das wirklich faszinierende an dem Buch, war daher für mich auch nicht Echo, sondern der Schrecksenmeister Eißpin und wie Moers es schafft, dass man abwechselnd ekel und Sympathie für diesen komischen Kauz entwickelt. So, mit den Gefühlen der LeserInnen für einen Antagonisten zu spielen ist große Klasse und trug für mich auch viel zur Spannung bei, da ich dadurch nicht wusste, wie das Buch enden würde. Wird Eißpin besiegt, oder durchlebt er eine Wandlung und lässt Echo von sich aus frei? Alles erschien bis kurz vor Schluss möglich und was es nun geworden ist, verrate ich euch natürlich nicht, da müsst ihr das Buch schon selber lesen, es lohnt sich 😉
Fazit:
Meine erster Ausflug nach Zamonien wird definitiv nicht mein letzter sein. Walter Moers hat all seine Lobpreisungen redlich verdient, indem er mit einer Sprachgewandheit, viel Witz und Ideenreichtum ein außergewöhnliches literarisch-kulinarisches Abenteuer erschaffen hat, dessen Genuss in vielerlei Hinsicht pures vegnügnen ist, da verzeihe ich ihm auch die ein oder andere lang gezogene Szene.
◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾
❗Important note: English is not my first language. So that English-speaking community members can still read my review, my review has been translated with the help of a translation program (since I don't have the time to translate it myself every time). I therefore apologize for any mistakes and strange phrasing.
Walter Moers is one of the greats of German fantasy literature. Anyone who is somehow involved with this genre here in Germany will inevitably come across this name at some point. His books top the bestseller lists and have won several awards and now I'm going to confess: I've never read anything by him before 🙈 You thought that should change this year and promptly put the only book by him that I own on my Friend's Choice list. Your wish is my command, but how did I like my first Moers?
About a Crat who set out to save his fat
Before I started reading, I had done a bit of research on the novel. Originally to find out whether I could read it without any previous knowledge of other Zamonien volumes, I soon came across the information that the novel was inspired by Gottfried Keller's "Spiegel, das Kätzchen" (Mirror, the Kitten), indeed you could even call it an adaptation. This made me prick up my ears and I decided to read the original first, which I did in the form of an audiobook.
Packed with this new literary knowledge (the novella is highly recommended, by the way), I then started The Alchemaster's Apprentice and of course couldn't help but look for parallels to Keller's work.
The basic plot is definitely the same, so the Zamonian version can certainly be seen as an adaptation: A down-on-his-luck kitten, or in our case Crat, encounters the evil wizard Ghoolion while starving. In order to escape imminent starvation, Crat enters into an ominous pact with him: The wizard will fatten up the Crat, provide it with shelter and care for it, but in return, when the time is right and the Crat is fattened up, he will get its fat (which, of course, the Crat cannot give up unscathed). So far, so similar. With the prior knowledge of Keller's original, exploring the Zamonian variant is a lot of fun, although of course Moers, as I expected with his reputation, does so much more with the novella than simply relocating it to Zamonia.
For me it was my very first trip to Zamonia, but I had no problems at all finding my way around the world. The advantage here is that The Alchemaster's Apprentice has a rather limited setting. The whole story takes place in the city of Malaisea and most of the action takes place in the castle of Ghoolion. In my opinion, the book is therefore ideal for getting to know Moer's style without being overwhelmed by the whole of Zamonia. And this familiarisation is worthwhile!
On the one hand, Moers' language reminds me of Michael Ende's "Der satanarchäolügenialkohöllische Wunschpunsch" (The Night of Wishes) in its wit and penchant for linguistic jokes, a book I love, and I am also impressed by the way Moers utilises and plays with all the caprices of the German language. Marvellous. Especially because he does this with a lot of humour. I've heard before that Moers' books have great humour and I can now confirm this myself. Be it when it comes to Theodore T. Theodore (guess what the T. could stand for), the one-eyed Tuwituwu who proudly uses foreign words completely wrong, the last Uggly of Malaisea Izanuela with a strict cheese diet and proud owner of a cheese museum, the two thousand four hundred and thirty-eight leather mice (who all introduce themselves to Echo individually) and so on and so forth. You can't stop smiling and it's a real pleasure to read. There are very few authors in the world who have such a wealth of ideas and attention to detail. New imaginative creatures and new wonders await around every corner and, just as Echo is served the most adventurous dishes by the alchemist, the reader discovers something new and fantastic on every page.
I know this review threatens to be far too long, but apart from Walter Moers' style, I would also like to say a few words about the plot. As already mentioned, the rough plot is based on Keller's novella, but whereas in the original the kitten quickly outwits the magician on its own, Echo needs a lot more help, but meets the most amazing characters in return. The only downer for me was that some of these encounters could have been one or two pages shorter. Especially in the last third, I had the feeling that Echo was going round in circles a lot and I would have liked him to act a bit more independently and quickly.
The really fascinating thing about the book for me was therefore not Echo, but the Alchemaster Ghoolion and how Moers manages to make you alternately feel disgusted and sympathetic towards this oddball. Playing with the reader's feelings for an antagonist in this way is great and added to the suspense for me, as I didn't know how the book would end. Will Ghoolion be defeated or will he undergo a change of mind and set Echo free of his own accord? Everything seemed possible until shortly before the end and of course I won't tell you what happened, you'll have to read the book yourself, it's worth it 😉
Conclusion:
My first trip to Zamonia will definitely not be my last. Walter Moers has truly earned all his praise by creating an extraordinary literary-culinary adventure with his eloquence, wit and wealth of ideas, the enjoyment of which is pure pleasure in many respects, so I can forgive him for the one or other drawn-out scene.
........................................................................................
Walter Moers ist eine Größe der deutschen phantastischen Literatur. Jeder, der sich hier bei uns irgendwie mit diesem Genre beschäftigt, wird unweigerlich irgendwann auf diesen Namen stoßen. Seine Bücher führen Bestsellerlisten an und haben einige Preise eingeheimst und nun komme ich und gestehe: Ich hatte bisher noch nie etwas von ihm gelesen 🙈 Das sollte sich dieses Jahr ändern, meintet auch ihr und habt prompt, das einzige Buch von ihm, das ich besitze auf die Friend’s Choice Liste gesetzt. Euer Wunsch, ist mein Befehl, doch wie hat mir meine erster Moers gefallen?
Von einem Krätzchen, das auszog sein Fett zu retten
Bevor ich mit dem Lesen ebgann hatte ich ein bisschen zu dem Roman recherchiert. Ursprünglich, um herauszufinden, ob ich ihn ohne Vorkenntnisse anderer Zamonien Bände lesen könnte, stieß ich schon bald auf die Information, dass der Roman von Gottfried Kellers Spiegel, das Kätzchen inspiriert ist, ja man könnte es bereits als Adaption bezeichnen. Da wurde ich nun hellhörig und beschloss mir zuerst das Original zu Gemüte zu führen, was ich in Form eines Hörbuchs auch tat.
Vollgepackt mit diesem neuen literarischen Wissen (die Novelle ist übrigens sehr empfehlenswert) begann ich dann mit dem Schrecksenmeister und kam natürlich nicht umhin, Parallelen zu Kellers Werk zu suchen.
Die Grundhandlung ist definitiv dieselbe, sodass man die zamonische Variante durchaus als Adaption verstehen kann: Ein vom Glück verlassenes Kätzchen oder in unserem Fall Krätzchen trifft hungernd auf den bösen Zauberer Eißpin. Um dem nahenden Hungertod zu entgehen, geht das Krätzchen einen unheilvollen Pakt mit ihm ein: Der Zauberer wird das Krätzchen mästen, ihm Unterschlupf bieten und pflegen, doch im Gegenzug bekommt er, wenn die Zeit reif und das Krätzchen gemästet ist, dessen Fett (was dieses natürlich leider nicht unbeschadet abgeben kann). Soweit, so ähnlich. Mit dem Vorwissen von Kellers Vorlage macht das Erkunden der zamonischen Variante viel Spaß, wobei Moers natürlich, wie ich es bei seinem Ruf erwartet hatte, so viel mehr aus der Novelle macht, als sie einfach nach Zamonien zu verlegen.
Für mich war es ja der allererste Ausflug nach Zamonien, doch ich hatte überhaupt keine Probleme mich in der Welt zurechtzufinden. Vorteil ist hier, dass der Schrecksenmeister einen eher beschränkten Handlungsraum hat. Die ganze Geschichte spielt in der Stadt Sledwaya und der Großteil der Handlung im Schloss von Eißpin. Das Buch ist in meinen Augen daher ideal, um Moers Stil kennenzulernen, ohne gleich von ganz Zamonien erschlagen zu werden. Und dieses kennenlernen lohnt sich!
Da ist zu einem Moers Sprache, die mich in ihrer Gewitztheit und der Vorliebe für Sprachwitze sehr an Michael Endes Wunschpunsch erinnert hat, ein Buch, das ich liebe und auch bei Moers beeindruckt mich die Kunst, mit der er alle Kapriolen der deutschen Sprache ausnutzt und mit ihnen spielt. Herrlich. Insbesondere, weil er dies mit viel Humor tut. Ich hörte ja schon vorher, dass Moers Bücher großartigen Humor besitzen und kann dies nun selber bestätigen. Sei es, wenn es um Fjodor F. Fjodor, den einäugigen Schuhu geht, der ganz stolz Fremdwörter völlig falsch nutzt, die Schreckse Izanuela mit strenger Käsediät und stolze Besitzerin eines Käsemuseums, die zweitausendvierhundertachtundreißig Ledermäuse (die sich Echo alle einzeln vorstellen) und und und. Man kommt aus dem schmunzeln gar nicht mehr raus udn das Lesen macht wirklich vergnügen. Überhaupt gibt es nur ganz wenige Autoren auf dieser Welt, die solch einen Ideenreichtum und Liebe zum Detail besitzen. Hinter jeder Ecke warten neue fantasievolle Geschöpfe, neue Wunder und so wie Echo vom Schrecksenmeister die abenteuerlichsten Gerichte serviert bekommt, entdeckt man als LeserIn auf jeder Seite neues und phantastisches.
Ich weiß, die Rezension droht viel zu lang zu werden, aber neben dem Stil von Walter Moers, möchte ich ach noch ein paar Worte zur Handlung verlieren. Wie bereits erwähnt, orientiert sich die grobe Handlung an Kellers Novelle, doch wo im Original das Kätzchen zügig aus eigener Kraft den Zauberer überlistet, braucht Echo deutlich mehr Hilfe, trifft dafür aber eben die tollsten Gestalten. Einziger Wermutstropen dabei war für mich, dass manche dieser Begegnungen doch eins, zwei Seiten kürzer hätten ausfallen können. Ich hatte gerade im letzten Drittel das Gefühl, dass sich Echo viel im Kreis dreht und hätte mir doch gewünscht, dass er ein bisschen eigenständiger und zügiger handelt.
Das wirklich faszinierende an dem Buch, war daher für mich auch nicht Echo, sondern der Schrecksenmeister Eißpin und wie Moers es schafft, dass man abwechselnd ekel und Sympathie für diesen komischen Kauz entwickelt. So, mit den Gefühlen der LeserInnen für einen Antagonisten zu spielen ist große Klasse und trug für mich auch viel zur Spannung bei, da ich dadurch nicht wusste, wie das Buch enden würde. Wird Eißpin besiegt, oder durchlebt er eine Wandlung und lässt Echo von sich aus frei? Alles erschien bis kurz vor Schluss möglich und was es nun geworden ist, verrate ich euch natürlich nicht, da müsst ihr das Buch schon selber lesen, es lohnt sich 😉
Fazit:
Meine erster Ausflug nach Zamonien wird definitiv nicht mein letzter sein. Walter Moers hat all seine Lobpreisungen redlich verdient, indem er mit einer Sprachgewandheit, viel Witz und Ideenreichtum ein außergewöhnliches literarisch-kulinarisches Abenteuer erschaffen hat, dessen Genuss in vielerlei Hinsicht pures vegnügnen ist, da verzeihe ich ihm auch die ein oder andere lang gezogene Szene.
◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾
❗Important note: English is not my first language. So that English-speaking community members can still read my review, my review has been translated with the help of a translation program (since I don't have the time to translate it myself every time). I therefore apologize for any mistakes and strange phrasing.
Walter Moers is one of the greats of German fantasy literature. Anyone who is somehow involved with this genre here in Germany will inevitably come across this name at some point. His books top the bestseller lists and have won several awards and now I'm going to confess: I've never read anything by him before 🙈 You thought that should change this year and promptly put the only book by him that I own on my Friend's Choice list. Your wish is my command, but how did I like my first Moers?
About a Crat who set out to save his fat
Before I started reading, I had done a bit of research on the novel. Originally to find out whether I could read it without any previous knowledge of other Zamonien volumes, I soon came across the information that the novel was inspired by Gottfried Keller's "Spiegel, das Kätzchen" (Mirror, the Kitten), indeed you could even call it an adaptation. This made me prick up my ears and I decided to read the original first, which I did in the form of an audiobook.
Packed with this new literary knowledge (the novella is highly recommended, by the way), I then started The Alchemaster's Apprentice and of course couldn't help but look for parallels to Keller's work.
The basic plot is definitely the same, so the Zamonian version can certainly be seen as an adaptation: A down-on-his-luck kitten, or in our case Crat, encounters the evil wizard Ghoolion while starving. In order to escape imminent starvation, Crat enters into an ominous pact with him: The wizard will fatten up the Crat, provide it with shelter and care for it, but in return, when the time is right and the Crat is fattened up, he will get its fat (which, of course, the Crat cannot give up unscathed). So far, so similar. With the prior knowledge of Keller's original, exploring the Zamonian variant is a lot of fun, although of course Moers, as I expected with his reputation, does so much more with the novella than simply relocating it to Zamonia.
For me it was my very first trip to Zamonia, but I had no problems at all finding my way around the world. The advantage here is that The Alchemaster's Apprentice has a rather limited setting. The whole story takes place in the city of Malaisea and most of the action takes place in the castle of Ghoolion. In my opinion, the book is therefore ideal for getting to know Moer's style without being overwhelmed by the whole of Zamonia. And this familiarisation is worthwhile!
On the one hand, Moers' language reminds me of Michael Ende's "Der satanarchäolügenialkohöllische Wunschpunsch" (The Night of Wishes) in its wit and penchant for linguistic jokes, a book I love, and I am also impressed by the way Moers utilises and plays with all the caprices of the German language. Marvellous. Especially because he does this with a lot of humour. I've heard before that Moers' books have great humour and I can now confirm this myself. Be it when it comes to Theodore T. Theodore (guess what the T. could stand for), the one-eyed Tuwituwu who proudly uses foreign words completely wrong, the last Uggly of Malaisea Izanuela with a strict cheese diet and proud owner of a cheese museum, the two thousand four hundred and thirty-eight leather mice (who all introduce themselves to Echo individually) and so on and so forth. You can't stop smiling and it's a real pleasure to read. There are very few authors in the world who have such a wealth of ideas and attention to detail. New imaginative creatures and new wonders await around every corner and, just as Echo is served the most adventurous dishes by the alchemist, the reader discovers something new and fantastic on every page.
I know this review threatens to be far too long, but apart from Walter Moers' style, I would also like to say a few words about the plot. As already mentioned, the rough plot is based on Keller's novella, but whereas in the original the kitten quickly outwits the magician on its own, Echo needs a lot more help, but meets the most amazing characters in return. The only downer for me was that some of these encounters could have been one or two pages shorter. Especially in the last third, I had the feeling that Echo was going round in circles a lot and I would have liked him to act a bit more independently and quickly.
The really fascinating thing about the book for me was therefore not Echo, but the Alchemaster Ghoolion and how Moers manages to make you alternately feel disgusted and sympathetic towards this oddball. Playing with the reader's feelings for an antagonist in this way is great and added to the suspense for me, as I didn't know how the book would end. Will Ghoolion be defeated or will he undergo a change of mind and set Echo free of his own accord? Everything seemed possible until shortly before the end and of course I won't tell you what happened, you'll have to read the book yourself, it's worth it 😉
Conclusion:
My first trip to Zamonia will definitely not be my last. Walter Moers has truly earned all his praise by creating an extraordinary literary-culinary adventure with his eloquence, wit and wealth of ideas, the enjoyment of which is pure pleasure in many respects, so I can forgive him for the one or other drawn-out scene.
September 26, 2020
Für mich ging es wieder einmal nach Zamonien und zwar in eine Ortschaft, welche ich bisher überhaupt noch nicht kannte. Die kleine Stadt Sledwaya dürfte dafür aber auch einen guten Grund haben, denn sie gilt als die krankste Stadt Zamoniens. Wo es in Buchhaim Unmengen an Antiquaren gab, reihten sich hier die Ärzte und Apotheker aneinander um die kranke Bevölkerung stets und ständig mit Medizin zu versorgen. Und hier soll eine schöne Geschichte schlummern? Oh ja!
Auch wenn das Buch „Der Schrecksenmeister“ heißt, geht es eigentlich um Echo, welcher eine Kratze ist. Dieser lebte bei einer netten Frau, welche ihn bis zu ihrem Tod pflegte und fütterte. Doch nun endete diese Zeit und Echo musste einen Ausweg ausfinden. Hier kam dann schließlich der Schrecksenmeistr ins Spiel, welcher Echo in einen Vertrag zwang, welcher schließlich seinen Tod bedeuten würde. Dafür würde ihn der Schrecksenmeister nicht nur verköstigen, sondern auch ein Zuhause bieten. Nachdem dies geschehen war, konnte die Geschichte richtig starten.
Dazu gehörte natürlich das man erfuhr, was eigentlich eine Kratze ist und was sie von einer Katze unterschied und natürlich welche Aufgabe der Schreckensenmeister überhaupt hatte. Hier möchte ich gleich erwähnen, das dieser Band wohl der düsterte aus Zamonien war. Denn auch wenn es sonst immer viele Gefahren gab, jagte mir dieser regelrecht Angst ein. Dies lag vermehrt am Schrecksenmeister selbst, welcher eine fast schon krankhafte Obsession zu allen Schrecklichen hatte und Spaß daran fand, wenn andere leiden.
Echo in diesem Umfeld zu erleben war daher eine recht emotionale Sache. Bis zum Ende fieberte ich mit um er aus den Händen des Schrecksensmeisters entkommen konnte. Denn Echo war wirklich ein ganz zauberhaftes Wesen, das in dieser düsteren Welt fast schon deplatziert wirkte. Natürlich genoss er gerade die tolle Bespeisung bei Schrechsenmeister Eißpin, musste aber doch feststellen das er und sein Schloss etwas Unheimliches an sich hatten.
Wer bis dahin noch nichts aus Zamonien gelesen hat, der sollte vielleicht erst mit einem anderen Band beginnen. Die sehr dunkle Handlung ist zwar ein Markenzeichen der Bücher, aber hier ging man noch einen Schritt weiter. Daher lohnt sich eher erst Buchhaim oder die Abenteuer von Käptn Blaubär zu lesen, da hier deutlich mehr freundliche Aspekte der Welt gab. Der Schreibstil war aber unverkennbar. Walter Moers spielte wieder mit seiner erschaffenen Welt und sorgte mit liebevollen Details dafür das man trotz der Krankheiten und Gefahren Sledwaya einmal besuchen wollte.
Wer Zamonien bereits mehrfach besucht hat, der dürfte auch diesmal wieder ein tolles Abenteuer erleben. Zwar waren die Erlebnisse in Sledwaya mit die düstertesten und blutigsten, welche ich bisher auf dem zamonischen Kontinent durchleben musste, aber Echo und seine liebliche Darstellung sorgten für das nötige Licht im Dunkel. Nebenbei gab es wieder eine Menge über Zamonien selbst zu erfahren und natürlich mit den Illustrationen auch viel zu bestaunen.
Auch wenn das Buch „Der Schrecksenmeister“ heißt, geht es eigentlich um Echo, welcher eine Kratze ist. Dieser lebte bei einer netten Frau, welche ihn bis zu ihrem Tod pflegte und fütterte. Doch nun endete diese Zeit und Echo musste einen Ausweg ausfinden. Hier kam dann schließlich der Schrecksenmeistr ins Spiel, welcher Echo in einen Vertrag zwang, welcher schließlich seinen Tod bedeuten würde. Dafür würde ihn der Schrecksenmeister nicht nur verköstigen, sondern auch ein Zuhause bieten. Nachdem dies geschehen war, konnte die Geschichte richtig starten.
Dazu gehörte natürlich das man erfuhr, was eigentlich eine Kratze ist und was sie von einer Katze unterschied und natürlich welche Aufgabe der Schreckensenmeister überhaupt hatte. Hier möchte ich gleich erwähnen, das dieser Band wohl der düsterte aus Zamonien war. Denn auch wenn es sonst immer viele Gefahren gab, jagte mir dieser regelrecht Angst ein. Dies lag vermehrt am Schrecksenmeister selbst, welcher eine fast schon krankhafte Obsession zu allen Schrecklichen hatte und Spaß daran fand, wenn andere leiden.
Echo in diesem Umfeld zu erleben war daher eine recht emotionale Sache. Bis zum Ende fieberte ich mit um er aus den Händen des Schrecksensmeisters entkommen konnte. Denn Echo war wirklich ein ganz zauberhaftes Wesen, das in dieser düsteren Welt fast schon deplatziert wirkte. Natürlich genoss er gerade die tolle Bespeisung bei Schrechsenmeister Eißpin, musste aber doch feststellen das er und sein Schloss etwas Unheimliches an sich hatten.
Wer bis dahin noch nichts aus Zamonien gelesen hat, der sollte vielleicht erst mit einem anderen Band beginnen. Die sehr dunkle Handlung ist zwar ein Markenzeichen der Bücher, aber hier ging man noch einen Schritt weiter. Daher lohnt sich eher erst Buchhaim oder die Abenteuer von Käptn Blaubär zu lesen, da hier deutlich mehr freundliche Aspekte der Welt gab. Der Schreibstil war aber unverkennbar. Walter Moers spielte wieder mit seiner erschaffenen Welt und sorgte mit liebevollen Details dafür das man trotz der Krankheiten und Gefahren Sledwaya einmal besuchen wollte.
Wer Zamonien bereits mehrfach besucht hat, der dürfte auch diesmal wieder ein tolles Abenteuer erleben. Zwar waren die Erlebnisse in Sledwaya mit die düstertesten und blutigsten, welche ich bisher auf dem zamonischen Kontinent durchleben musste, aber Echo und seine liebliche Darstellung sorgten für das nötige Licht im Dunkel. Nebenbei gab es wieder eine Menge über Zamonien selbst zu erfahren und natürlich mit den Illustrationen auch viel zu bestaunen.
September 1, 2020
4.5 Sterne
Dies war ein ziemlich düsteres Märchen aus Zamonien. Ich finde es immer wahnsinnig toll wie Walter Moers die Welt von Zamonien mit all seinen liebenswerten Figuren erschafft.
Doch hier war es mir eine Spur zu düster. Ich habe Echo und die anderen neuen Figuren sehr gerne begleitet, doch mein Lieblingsband von der Reihe wird es wohl nicht.
Zugegebenermaßen fehlte mir dafür Hildegunst von Mythenmetz. Er bleibt einfach meine Lieblingsfigur.
Von daher freue ich mich sehr auf den nächsten Band, in dem er wieder der Protagonist sein wird.
Dies war ein ziemlich düsteres Märchen aus Zamonien. Ich finde es immer wahnsinnig toll wie Walter Moers die Welt von Zamonien mit all seinen liebenswerten Figuren erschafft.
Doch hier war es mir eine Spur zu düster. Ich habe Echo und die anderen neuen Figuren sehr gerne begleitet, doch mein Lieblingsband von der Reihe wird es wohl nicht.
Zugegebenermaßen fehlte mir dafür Hildegunst von Mythenmetz. Er bleibt einfach meine Lieblingsfigur.
Von daher freue ich mich sehr auf den nächsten Band, in dem er wieder der Protagonist sein wird.
March 30, 2024
Gewohnt fantasievoll, allerdings auch gewohnt schwafelig. ;)
January 27, 2019
Ein weiteres Meisterwerk der zamonischen Hochliteratur. Mit dem Krätzchen als Protagonisten hat man hier das passende Gegenstück zum Wolpertinger und Rumo. Ähnlich wie Rumo ist auch der Schrecksenmeister wieder düster und etwas brutaler. Es schafft eine in sich vollkommen stimmige Welt aus Schrecksen, Schrecksenmeister und Alchemie die stets fesselte, unterhielt und bis zur letzte Seite spannend blieb.
April 12, 2011
Another entertaining yarn from Walter Moers.
This time, it is interesting to see Moers take his creativity into the realm of cooking. I am a picky eater who doesn't want to try much of anything, but his vivid imagery couldn't help but make me drool a little.
Furthermore, the lead character - a Crat - is a fun, protagonist. You are on his side right from the beginning, but there are moments where Moers wants you to think about why exactly you like this character...should you?
As always, I love whenever one of Moers' characters tells a historical tale of Zamonia. There are a few of those in 'Alchemaster's' and they are wonderful.
Many great moments to enjoy from this book, but one of my "favorites" (if I can refer to it that way) is actually a very sad/grotesque/heart-breaking scene. I've read enough books that rarely when I am reading something does my heart jump, but there is a scene about 2/3rds through the book that does just this. It is amazing writing that can take completely far-fetched, fantastic creatures - in very gruesome environments - and yet create a scene that is so heart-wrenching. I don't want to give any spoilers...but if anyone reads this review and has read the book, I would love the chance to discuss the scene I am discussing.
Very fun and entertaining read. Another great tale by Walter Moers.
This time, it is interesting to see Moers take his creativity into the realm of cooking. I am a picky eater who doesn't want to try much of anything, but his vivid imagery couldn't help but make me drool a little.
Furthermore, the lead character - a Crat - is a fun, protagonist. You are on his side right from the beginning, but there are moments where Moers wants you to think about why exactly you like this character...should you?
As always, I love whenever one of Moers' characters tells a historical tale of Zamonia. There are a few of those in 'Alchemaster's' and they are wonderful.
Many great moments to enjoy from this book, but one of my "favorites" (if I can refer to it that way) is actually a very sad/grotesque/heart-breaking scene. I've read enough books that rarely when I am reading something does my heart jump, but there is a scene about 2/3rds through the book that does just this. It is amazing writing that can take completely far-fetched, fantastic creatures - in very gruesome environments - and yet create a scene that is so heart-wrenching. I don't want to give any spoilers...but if anyone reads this review and has read the book, I would love the chance to discuss the scene I am discussing.
Very fun and entertaining read. Another great tale by Walter Moers.
September 6, 2015
Se non avete mai letto Moers, non sapete cosa sia un libro geniale e fantasioso!
Arrivo al punto di dire che, per me, Moers ha più fantasia della Rowling stessa. Non prendetemi per eretica, la Rowling è la mia dea e colleziono edizioni di HP in tutte le lingue.. Ma Moers.. Diamine, Moers non è umano!
L'accalappiastreghe è un libro complesso e complicato, non fatevi ingannare dalla copertina né dalla dicitura 'libro per bambini'.. Qui come non mai considero assurda la catalogazione (non credo lo farei leggere ad un giovanissimo..), al suo interno troverete tutto ciò che riuscite ad immaginare e per il restante 98% ondate di genialità a non finire :D
Il libro è evocativo da far paura.. Vi consiglio di aver mangiato prima, perché certi piatti descritti mettono una fame incredibile!
E.. Non fidatevi di Malfrosto!
Arrivo al punto di dire che, per me, Moers ha più fantasia della Rowling stessa. Non prendetemi per eretica, la Rowling è la mia dea e colleziono edizioni di HP in tutte le lingue.. Ma Moers.. Diamine, Moers non è umano!
L'accalappiastreghe è un libro complesso e complicato, non fatevi ingannare dalla copertina né dalla dicitura 'libro per bambini'.. Qui come non mai considero assurda la catalogazione (non credo lo farei leggere ad un giovanissimo..), al suo interno troverete tutto ciò che riuscite ad immaginare e per il restante 98% ondate di genialità a non finire :D
Il libro è evocativo da far paura.. Vi consiglio di aver mangiato prima, perché certi piatti descritti mettono una fame incredibile!
E.. Non fidatevi di Malfrosto!
October 29, 2021
Not a review, just some pointless blathering about the title of the english edition.
I think The Alchemaster's Apprentice is a boring title which made me think of how I would have named it. The word Schreckse from the original title Der Schrecksenmeister is a made-up hybrid word creation out of Schreck (fright, scare) and Hexe (witch). Since fritch (fright + witch) is phonetically too close to fridge I think scritch (scare + witch) is a better choice as a translation for Schreckse. But wait scritch is the archaic version of screech, thus it isn't a good candidate either. Damn translating is hard. John Brownjohn translated Schreckse with Uggly. Uggly doesn't preserve the original wordplay but at least the level of quirkiness and I like Brownjohns choice. So Uggly Master would have been a better title in my opinion.
I think The Alchemaster's Apprentice is a boring title which made me think of how I would have named it. The word Schreckse from the original title Der Schrecksenmeister is a made-up hybrid word creation out of Schreck (fright, scare) and Hexe (witch). Since fritch (fright + witch) is phonetically too close to fridge I think scritch (scare + witch) is a better choice as a translation for Schreckse. But wait scritch is the archaic version of screech, thus it isn't a good candidate either. Damn translating is hard. John Brownjohn translated Schreckse with Uggly. Uggly doesn't preserve the original wordplay but at least the level of quirkiness and I like Brownjohns choice. So Uggly Master would have been a better title in my opinion.
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