Traveler of the Century

This novel by Andres Neuman is so good that I've put off reading the last five pages for a month. The premise is simple: a traveler (Hans) comes upon a mysterious German town where the streets seem to change their layout and direction every day--the kind of city were "the night barked and meowed" (11). He befriends an organ grinder and his dog, Franz, who live in a cave and sponsor a kind of low-brow salon in which revolution and social justice are the main topics of conversation. He also befriends a young girl, Sophie, soon to be married to a man she does not love, who hosts a high-brow literary and cultural salon, where many of the same topics are discussed from a very different point of view.

Because it is written as a 19th Century novel, I am more or less prepared to forgive Neuman the indulgence of calling his main character Sophie (Sophia = wisdom in Greek). What is particularly wonderful about the novel is that although it reads like a 19th Century novel, Neuman does not stint in his descriptions of the passionate sexual relationship that develops between Hans and Sophie, which is quite beautiful. Consider:

"He thought they shouldn't be doing this and he didn't care. He stopped thinking in a flash, and Sophie dragged him with her. Hans groped in the air, lost control, and found her breasts. They both rolled downhill together" (340). 

Their sexual relationship is premised on a mutual interest in the translation of European literature, and they use sex to heighten the intensity of their translations, and their translations to heighten the intensity of their sex. 

And then there are some lines that are simply too good for words, as wen Hans asks Sophie if something is wrong, and she replies, "No . . . I don't know if I just had an orgasm or a premonition," which has to be one of the best lines in all of modern literature (496). 

In short this is the book that lovers of the 19th Century novel have been waiting for. Ponderous discussions of revolution, history, philosophy, and literature paired with descriptions of a love affair that makes Emma Bovary's fantasy life seem tame. Truly, I am in love with this book.