Fiction

Chasing Homer

Chasing Homer

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  • Create Date：2021-12-07 06:51:25
  • Update Date：2025-09-07
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  • Author：László Krasznahorkai
  • ISBN：0811227979
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Summary

In this thrilling chase narrative， a hunted man escapes certain death at breakneck speed—carooming through Europe and heading blindly South。 Faster and faster， to escape the assassins on his heels， our protagonist flies forward， blending into crowds， adjusting to terrains， hopping on and off ferries， always desperately trying to stay a step ahead of certain death: the past did not exist for him， only what was current existed， he was a prisoner of the instant， and he rushed into this instant， an instant that had no continuation， just as it had no earlier version， and he would have told himself—had he had time to think about this between two instants—that he had no need either for past or future for neither existed。 But， in fact， he had no time between two instants。 Since there’s no such thing as two instants。



Krasznahorkai—celebrated for the exhilarating energy of his prose—outdoes himself in Chasing Homer， and has， moreover， envisioned the book as a collaborative enterprise， with a beautiful full-color painting by Max Neumann for each of its nineteen chapters to evoke our hero’s plight and--reaching out of the book proper--further propelling his flight by the wildly percussive music of Miklos Szilveszter， with a score for each chapter as well （to be accessed by the reader via QR codes printed in the book）。 Chasing Homer is a unique and incredibly swift tour of Laszlo’s world—a treat not to be missed。

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Reviews

Paul Fulcher ，

and yes， this is what I've been doing for decades， or at least for years， I've lost count of whether it's been decades， or years， but never mind what any rational calendar might indicate， maybe it's been merely months， or only weeks， I feel it's been years， possibly even decades that I've been on the road， but really what difference does it make if it's been only months， or just a few weeks， in fact I can even imagine that it's only moments ago that they handed down my sentence， its purport is and yes， this is what I've been doing for decades， or at least for years， I've lost count of whether it's been decades， or years， but never mind what any rational calendar might indicate， maybe it's been merely months， or only weeks， I feel it's been years， possibly even decades that I've been on the road， but really what difference does it make if it's been only months， or just a few weeks， in fact I can even imagine that it's only moments ago that they handed down my sentence， its purport is perfectly clear to me， I haven't the slightest doubt that there's reason enough for the judgment， the only thing that's not yet clear is what that reason is。Chasing Homer （2021） is John Batki's translation of László Krasznahorkai's Mindig Homérosznak （2019）。The text is narrated in the first person （although oddly this is changed from the 3rd person original） by a fugitive who has been fleeing for an unclear length of time （decades or moments？） from some killers determined （for unclear reasons） to execute a judgement and to bring his life to a violent end， or at least so he believes。 During the time of the novel he travels， trying to be as random in his movements as possible， along the Croatian Adriatic coast， eventually finding， he hopes， refuge in the cave where Calypso imprisoned Odysseus， according to Homer's Odyssey， which Krasznahorkai situates （as does local legend） on the island of Mljet。See here for a picture of the cave all the same， it could be that they're specifically targeting moments of weakness， yes， they might be aiming exclusively at my weak moments， perhaps that's all they want， to catch me at just such an instant， and the whole thing would be over， because of course they're out to get me and It's ridiculous to quibble over words， not only ridiculous but downright unacceptable to be splitting hairs here， it's cowardly， this kind of wordplay， it doesn't make any sense， when all along I'm perfectly aware that they're out to kill me， that's the long and the short of it， It's a game of patience， a deadly hunt they're conducting from a position of superiority， though it's also quite possible that they're actually set on making a cat and mouse game of it， they certainly have the requisite patience， they've been and still are ever so persistent， no， never for a minute do they seem exasperated， which would tell me that， yes， fine， up till now they've only been amusing themselves， but now enough of that， and at last they'll grab me， hang me， and gut me， disembowel me， decapitate me， out my heart out， anything， just to finish me off， but no， in fact I never feel they have any impatience of that sort， but rather the exact opposite， though I know that they'll never relent， It's as if their orders aren't to make quick work of me， not to bring matters to a speedy conclusion， but rather to keep pursuing me forever， to never lose sight of me， and Instead of focusing on the end result， the day when they'll finally have me in their claws and finish me off， they've been instructed to focus on making no mistakes， just keeping me in sight， shadowing me ceaselessly， staying on my trail so that always be aware of what my life's like， nothing but a constant state of persecution until in the end this life， my life， will be ripped away from me—If they can catch me。 Jeremy's excellent review （https://www。goodreads。com/review/show。。。） contains the brilliant and insightful line on the novel's strengths， on which I simply can't improve: "krasznahorkai's protagonist is like a scintillating amalgamation of a pessoan heteronym and bernhardian temperament， afflicted by a kafkaesque ordeal all the while conveying a ruminative， reflective character and chronicling the clever stratagems necessary to avoid detection and stay alive。"The text itself consists of 20 brief chapters， often a single， breathless sentence。 But beyond the words on the page， this is a multi-media work of art。 The text is interspersed with paintings by Max Neumann， who has colloborated with Krasznahorkai before on Animalinside， and their are QR code links athte start of erach chapter to percussion music by Szilveszter Miklós （which can be found here https://www。ndbooks。com/chasing-homer/）。 However， I have to say this aspect didn't really work for me， and I emphasise for me。 In Animalinside the paintings and text were clearly in dialogue， but I didn't really see that here。 And the music was rather lost on me （and indeed I stopped listening to it after the first few chapters） and again， other than a reference in Chapter 14 to the tone of a ship's engines， I didn't pick up any direct relation。 Anna's wonderful review sets the work in the context of Krasznahorkai's wider work and contains insightful comments on the translation choices: https://www。goodreads。com/review/show。。。Overall - for me a very good 4 stars。 The text although well written didn't rise to the author's finest。 And， which may well be more my failing， although interesting in their own right， I didn't find either music or paintings added to my appreciation of the text。 。。。more

Michael Berquist ，

This thrilling cat and mouse story can be read in a single sitting。 It is reminiscent of Dostoyevsky with an equally conflicted protagonist。 The inclusion of the music and artwork infused QR codes was inspired。 The words of the short chapters seemed to echo the rhythm of the original music。 This short novel is begging to be performed as a performance art piece。

Joey ，

Love me some László K

Cymru Roberts ，

2 stars for the illustration and music。 The writing is useless。I will give massive respect for the format of this book。 Using QR codes to link to music while reading is a brilliant idea， an example of sorely needed innovation in the platform of the novel。 The music， by drummer Miklós Szilveszter， has a very high production quality， and the drumming itself is cool。 Max Neumann's artwork is also cool， but nothing out of this world if you have an instagram account; however I bet an exhibit of his I 2 stars for the illustration and music。 The writing is useless。I will give massive respect for the format of this book。 Using QR codes to link to music while reading is a brilliant idea， an example of sorely needed innovation in the platform of the novel。 The music， by drummer Miklós Szilveszter， has a very high production quality， and the drumming itself is cool。 Max Neumann's artwork is also cool， but nothing out of this world if you have an instagram account; however I bet an exhibit of his IRL would be really cool， esp if it had Mr Szilveszter's corresponding beats。The writing makes less of an impression。 It become apparent within the first few lines that this is not going to go anywhere， and I'm bored of this kind of off-the-top-of-your-head writing。 Why？ Because I could write this shit in my sleep， and so could you。 The fact that Mr Krasznahorkai is some supposedly obscure Hungarian dude （who has also won so many prizes） doesn't mean fuck all to me， tbh。 This is Beckett's trilogy but worse， and less， and for the life of me I don't know how I could recommend even Beckett with a straight face。 It was "crazy" when Beckett did it cuz no one had done it before like that。 In 2021 it's almost embarrassing。Writing is a reflective art。 The audiovisual media are better suited for the immediate sensory-effect that this project is aiming for。 Writing can digest the past and re-express it in ways that highten the emotional-cognitive responses — but if you want a reaction in the present， music and illustration can do that much better， or at least much more easily。 Not saying novels and poetry can't do this as well， cuz they can， but they have to be very strong and very specific （in terms of sensation， if not exposition）。 This book is not that。 It only serves as an example as to how much better A/V is at getting instant reactions。And a couple other things pissed me off about this book。 The chapter about how he learned the Classics and reading and writing but never how to fist fight and pick locks is such a boring argument， especially coming from an obscure Hungarian intellectual who only exists for people outside his known friends and family because he is a fucking intellectual。 These highbrow mugs who are all about saying how pointless cognitive and imaginative practice is compared to "real life" just show that they never cared to begin with; they too are working in the wrong media。 No wonder。 The other thing that got my goose was the nifty lil toss-in of Odysseus， and even the vague "Homer" in the title， as if this has fuck all to do with The Odyssey。 Everyone and their bro wants to drop these lit-refs for brownie points， Armor Towels does it in his latest e-masclit affair too。 Pick something else， for chrissakes。 Like， why don't they arbitrarily make a Christ reference or something？ Nah nah， too many people've heard of Jesus， that wouldn't be deep enough， bro。。。。。This one's going in the bin。 。。。more

Anna ，

Who chases Homer？If AnimalInside， Krasznahorkai’s previous collaboration with Max Neumann， resulted in a bone-chilling portrayal of existential menace from the aggressor’s point of view， Chasing Homer gives us the reverse: an exploration of the raw experience of being persecuted by the faceless hunters。 While this formal comparison with AnimalInside is irresistible， the protagonist in Chasing Homer insists that his “flight in no way mirrors my killers’ actions， there’s no equivalence at all， suc Who chases Homer？If AnimalInside， Krasznahorkai’s previous collaboration with Max Neumann， resulted in a bone-chilling portrayal of existential menace from the aggressor’s point of view， Chasing Homer gives us the reverse: an exploration of the raw experience of being persecuted by the faceless hunters。 While this formal comparison with AnimalInside is irresistible， the protagonist in Chasing Homer insists that his “flight in no way mirrors my killers’ actions， there’s no equivalence at all， such logic is unjustifiable， and implying some connection is a line of reasoning containing something deeply， atrociously immoral， immoral in the sense of speaking of killer and victim in the same breath， as if the one could not exist without the other”。 This asymmetry， in my reading， is a reaffirmation of the uniqueness of life。 The fact that the protagonist， just as his persecutors， is nameless and faceless does not serve to enhance the ominous sense of impersonality， but rather the opposite。 It plumbs depths that are so extremely personal to the human being that they require no naming。 The fear， the seconds of hesitations， strategy and then the paradoxical strategic abandonment of strategy， “flight’s technical details” that are only known to the person in flight， are described in the first half of the book。 In the English translation， this sense of isolation in one’s own mind is enhanced by the translator’s choice to use the first person， although the original Hungarian is written in the third person。The scarce and efficient plot is surprisingly easy to follow。 Half-way， the protagonist reaches some safe haven on an island from where he can access another， more mysterious island known as the place where Calypso held Odysseus captive。 The descriptions of this sense of apparent peace reminded me of Baron Wenckheim’s joy over realizing that “his question — why did he have to live， and so forth — simply wasn’t a question， but was itself the answer， this was the answer to his question， thought the Baron， his question was the answer”， only for his realization to be –if you ask me， only apparently – rendered useless by the ensuing accident。This little multimedia book is Krasznahorkai’s reckoning with Homer’s inevitable legacy。 This is more evident in the positive note in the Hungarian title， “Mindig Homérosznak”， which literally translates as “always for Homer”， but in the context， it is closer to “always in the direction of Homer”。The Homeric myth serving as the framework of this narrative is not accidental: Odysseus refused the immortality offered by Calypso， preferring to return home and to whatever mortality implied: “I， the fugitive， am forced to sojourn in precisely the very world from – and because of – which I’m fleeing”。 I regret what is lost in translation here。 The Hungarian sentence here uses the auxiliary verb “kell” （must）， suggesting necessity not necessarily as external coercion， but also the （valiant） compliance with an inner moral compulsion。 But then the English title deftly recovers what may have been lost in the translation of this specific credo sentence: the hunted himself becomes a hunter – chasing Homer。After his temporary experience of heaven-like safety he does share Wenckheim’s fate （albeit by different means）。 This denouement， more than a potentially envious revenge on protagonists who find a sense of meaning and peace is another instance of my favorite author’s way to embrace the paradox of human life in the tension between the nothingness – the no – it has been called from and the yes that the human creature builds by culture and civilization。 。。。more

Ken ，

A fine novella， and a good introduction to Krasznahorkai’s style and sensibility。 The dust jacket’s mention of Samuel Beckett is apt - this is the type of “thriller” B might have written。Worth noting - this is a multimedia book。 In addition to the lovely artwork in the book， there are QR codes at the start if each chapter。 These play audio tracks if percussion mood-setting introductions to each chapter。 Don’t skip past these。There’s also K’s haunting hallucinatory style。 It’s very addictive。

Justin Kern ，

Includes a gimmick of having QR codes that link to audio of different drum。mp3's for each chapter。 Includes a gimmick of having QR codes that link to audio of different drum。mp3's for each chapter。 。。。more

Peter ，

I didn’t think I’d like it as much as I did。 This is the first multimedia book I’ve ever read that effectively incorporates music into the text through QR code’s。 Szilveszter Miklós’ percussion heavy music is a fantastic vehicle for the pace of the text， and Max Neumann’s paintings effectively grasp the bleak abstractions of the narrative。 Truthfully， this book alone would have earned a goodreads 3 were it not for the expert pairing of music and illustrations that happen to turn a normal reading I didn’t think I’d like it as much as I did。 This is the first multimedia book I’ve ever read that effectively incorporates music into the text through QR code’s。 Szilveszter Miklós’ percussion heavy music is a fantastic vehicle for the pace of the text， and Max Neumann’s paintings effectively grasp the bleak abstractions of the narrative。 Truthfully， this book alone would have earned a goodreads 3 were it not for the expert pairing of music and illustrations that happen to turn a normal reading experience into something cinematic， although Krasznahorkai’s work is admirable and up to par， just not quite as narrative as I would have anticipated 。。。more

David ，

This is a delightfully clever little book， challenging our expectations at every turn。 For most of the story， the narrator is on the run from unnamed pursuers as he flees down Croatia’s Adriatic coast。 The English translation presents the narration in first-person， which adds immediacy to the chase and layers a confessional element to the frequent interludes。 Chapter 9， a meditation on the meaning of life， is particularly compelling。 The heart of this work， though， is its dialogue with Homer’s U This is a delightfully clever little book， challenging our expectations at every turn。 For most of the story， the narrator is on the run from unnamed pursuers as he flees down Croatia’s Adriatic coast。 The English translation presents the narration in first-person， which adds immediacy to the chase and layers a confessional element to the frequent interludes。 Chapter 9， a meditation on the meaning of life， is particularly compelling。 The heart of this work， though， is its dialogue with Homer’s Ulysses。 The interplay between the two works becomes more explicit at the end as the narrator searches for Calypso’s grotto， bewitched and enchanted like his literary forebear。 。。。more

Jayden gonzalez ，

BUMPING THE QR CODE TRACKS IN THE RADIOLOGIST’S PACKED WAITING ROOM ON MY JBL FLIP3 BLUETOOTH SPEAKER — BOOK IN MY LAP NOT EVEN OPEN。

WndyJW ，

This is a beautifully constructed and immersive book。 We don’t read it as much as we experience it。 Krasznahorkai’s first person narrative is compulsive and unrelenting， each chapter creates the sense of urgency， of movement with percussive music accessed via QR codes （or the list of links in the back，） and throughout the book we are confronted with Max Neumann’s eerie， unsettling abstract paintings of the human form。Krasznahorkai doesn’t tell a story， we know someone is on the run， believing th This is a beautifully constructed and immersive book。 We don’t read it as much as we experience it。 Krasznahorkai’s first person narrative is compulsive and unrelenting， each chapter creates the sense of urgency， of movement with percussive music accessed via QR codes （or the list of links in the back，） and throughout the book we are confronted with Max Neumann’s eerie， unsettling abstract paintings of the human form。Krasznahorkai doesn’t tell a story， we know someone is on the run， believing that killers are chasing them， they are moving south along the Adriatic coast towards the island where Calypso held Odysseus captive。 That’s the story， such as it is。 What Krasznahorkai does is makes us feel by presenting us with moments: moments of hesitation and confusion， the moment we make a split second decision， moments of elation， then fear， moments of hope， then moments of exhaustion。 I made the mistake of trying to understand the book-there is nothing to understand。 It’s not a story， it’s an experience of being hunted。This collaboration between writer， composer， and visual artist is brilliant and I hope there will be more of this。 Highly recommended。 。。。more

Brother K ，

I love László Krasznahorkai dearly， and have read all of his works which have been translated into English with the exception of three short stories。。。two of which I have just acquired。 I've also followed him into the movies he did with Béla Tarr and watched & read many interviews with him。 So it pains me to say that CHASING HOMER is not worth your time。 But I don't think it does any good to praise him for a sub-par work。 The thing is， if this story had been one of a dozen or so pieces in a coll I love László Krasznahorkai dearly， and have read all of his works which have been translated into English with the exception of three short stories。。。two of which I have just acquired。 I've also followed him into the movies he did with Béla Tarr and watched & read many interviews with him。 So it pains me to say that CHASING HOMER is not worth your time。 But I don't think it does any good to praise him for a sub-par work。 The thing is， if this story had been one of a dozen or so pieces in a collection， it wouldn't have bothered me much。 But gussying it up with that execrable "art" by Max Neumann。。。which seems to have no connection to the text whatsoever。。。and pretending that the drum solos are music that accompanies each chapter。。。when the truth is that they're so short that you'd have to play them four or five times to actually serve as background music to the reading， even though the chapters are very short， and that they add nothing to the reading experience other than a distraction。。。well， it's all too much。 And $20 for a book whose text only covers 60 pages， and many of them not full pages。。。that's just a rip-off， isn't it？ If you're a dedicated Krasznahorkai fan， then sure， go for this。 But if you're not familiar with his writing， start with something that's substantial and accessible （but--WARNING！--still difficult） like SATANTANGO。 。。。more

Chuck LoPresti ，

“The only thing that’s not clear yet is what that reason is。" – no reason so all reasons。 There’s no time – only rhythm that must be used to evade perceived attackers。 He must rely on his ability to distinguish a glance in the crowd。 Ensor’s Entry has been used to illustrate Kraznahorkai before in publication - so we can confide in his affinity 。 Chapter three features an outline of an education which substantial， omits the skills needed here to evade his pursuers。 If there's a question of role “The only thing that’s not clear yet is what that reason is。" – no reason so all reasons。 There’s no time – only rhythm that must be used to evade perceived attackers。 He must rely on his ability to distinguish a glance in the crowd。 Ensor’s Entry has been used to illustrate Kraznahorkai before in publication - so we can confide in his affinity 。 Chapter three features an outline of an education which substantial， omits the skills needed here to evade his pursuers。 If there's a question of role of narrator - K explains he'd object。 But by stepping aside - he casts a sidereal glance and we - as attentive reader - asks who our narrator is being。 Like Hrabal when he peeks out from behind the curtain - K does the same but with more layers of cloaks than James Brown。 Totally the same vibe- conscious display of skill。 So he starts with no protection from the paranoia。 He defines insanity as the lack of ability to suspend unbridled concentration。 “Insanity is a question suspended in limbo， the answer to which must exist， but it would be like a mute person saying something to a deaf person” – Like Charles Ives Unanswered Question。 Blending in to the crowd like in Canetti's essays。 There can be no desire or distinguishing comments that might result in being isolated and identified in contrast to the anonymity from the crowd。 There is no space between instances。 No meaning - just signification。 No purpose – just consequence as shown in the conclusion of his Melancholy of Resistance - if you've read it - you'll see the same thought and pattern of thinking。 So。。。 just a chain of actions – stumbling forth and nothing that can be expressed in mathematical logic intentional or aleatory。 The slight lift before immolation is presented as example – so why ask what life is？ You’re just escaping prior to that inevitable exit。 But then the concept of Homer is introduced。 Why？ I think K has reached a similar conclusion as Queneau。 Both have read and wrote with a love of reading。 Krasznahorkai shows his affinity to Kosztolanyi and Krudy， both would have you travel with them but settle on writing to engage an audience because they wrote with a radiant understanding of their lack of immediate impact based， in no small part， on their geographic and linguistic distance。 This is literature in translation and it's fair to say that New Directions has published this in accordance of Benjamin's task。 No small task indeed。 He seems to reach the same conclusion as Queneau - that Homeric abandonment is prime and why shouldn't a writer love a writer most of all？ Rabelais and Cervantes have been similarly effective in leading a great mind down a not dissimilar path with no less effective results。 Maybe Jarry didn't ask the same questions aloud but I'd bet he thought them。 Krasznahorkai doesn't dance like Faustroll or even peek out from behind the theater curtain， but he still laughs just as loud。 Why draw contrast from himself from the Japanese like Ensor's chinoseries？ Why cloak himself like those same Pierrots？ I think he reveals his self as narrator here。 We move together south towards Bocklin's Isle of the dead and away from fear at the same time。 If you must know what it's about - and you don't: there's the admission of fear and paranoia， and that meets with the physical movement south and then fear gives way to a love of Homeric efficacy。 To write yourself into a space， away from a space， to a space。 One thing never changes - there's never a space between episodes。 Like Jarry at his best - he points away from himself to others。 He tells us what to read here and why， Pay attention closely。 This is the current master of the Apocalypse after all。It should also be noted that K is not content to reach you with his labyrinthine sentences also - there's QR codes as well as published links to a soundtrack of percussion performed by Miklos Szilveszter and drawings by Max Neumann that round out a very powerful package。 。。。more

Bbrown ，

With an accompanying sound track placed into the text using QR codes， paintings， an abnormal font， and László Krasznahorkai's signature page-long sentences， Chasing Homer is not a novella but a fever dream multimedia experience。 The improvisations of jazz drummer Szilveszter Miklós mirror the intentionally varied and “wrong” movements of the narrator as he flees from the killers （not swans） that may or may not be actually pursuing him， and the fast， irregular drumbeats magnify the tension of the With an accompanying sound track placed into the text using QR codes， paintings， an abnormal font， and László Krasznahorkai's signature page-long sentences， Chasing Homer is not a novella but a fever dream multimedia experience。 The improvisations of jazz drummer Szilveszter Miklós mirror the intentionally varied and “wrong” movements of the narrator as he flees from the killers （not swans） that may or may not be actually pursuing him， and the fast， irregular drumbeats magnify the tension of the narrator's flight。 The abstract paintings of Max Neumann， often filled with dark figures or rough， colorless faces， are by turns ominous and otherworldly， perhaps representative of the narrator's nebulous pursuers。 Krasznahorkai's writing style is perfect for depicting a paranoid odyssey， and the lengthy sentences furthermore embody the narrator's central belief that time is not a series of instances， but only a single instant。 In that single instant the narrator believes that there is no time to sleep， or eat， or think， or figure out if you're insane， there is only time enough to flee， mindlessly， because to have a plan is to accept your own doom。 Eventually the narrator's escape is transformed from something driven by fear into an internal compulsion， resulting in an end that I frankly did not understand。This is not Krasznahorkai's first work to integrate material outside of the text itself， but it does so far more wholeheartedly than in his previous novel War & War， where the additional material was purely optional。 In Chasing Homer， the pieces apart from the text are not just gimmicks but central to the work as a whole。 This novella is even shorter than its page count would suggest， given the pages taken up by artwork， and so the work does not overstay its welcome （something it could easily do， as not everyone who buys a book also wants to listen to an hour of improvisational jazz drumming）。 It’s easily finished in a single sitting， and I have a hard time imagining a fan of Krasznahorkai disliking that sitting。 That being said， while I found Chasing Homer to be a fun experimental work， it’s not among my favorite works by Krasznahorkai。 Putting his novels aside， even comparing Chasing Homer to his other short works I prefer Krasznahorkai’s The Last Wolf， chiefly because it tells a compelling story even apart from its stylistic novelty。 The story of Chasing Homer， with a narrator of questionable sanity jumping between different topics （some as disparate as a tangent about his disgust at seeing a lab mouse transitioning into prayers to Zeus and Athena）， just wasn’t as satisfying， even with the travel narrative that stitches the work into a cohesive whole。 And， as previously mentioned， I didn’t really understand the ending， so if there is depth there and I missed it then that’s a failure on my part。 In terms of the ending， （view spoiler）[is the narrator being compelled to the cave like a person under Calypso’s spell？ But then in his death why does he take the form of a rat？ He’s been talking to people and drinking coffee so he must not have been a rat before， and Calypso doesn’t transform men into animals， that’s Circe， so I guess if there was mythological significance to the story’s ending I missed it。 （hide spoiler）]Chasing Homer is a fun， unique experience， where all the parts play off of each other and magnify the work as a whole， and it’s easy to recommend on that basis so long as you are okay with the cost-to-length ratio。 All that being said， it only had the basic framework of a story， not one with substance。 I doubt that Chasing Homer， as different as it was to read， will stick with me for long。 3/5。One last note， frequently when I read a Krasznahorkai work newly released by New Directions I notice errors that should have been picked up during editing。 This time I noticed no such errors。 Good job New Directions！ 。。。more

jeremy ，

a place of shelter will be ruled by terror and miscalculation， whereas out here in the open， i keep reminding myself even as i keep looking quickly over my shoulder， that that's out of the question， out here—facing forward again—it's just a state of constant， ceaseless， ever-present vigilance。 an absolutely magnificent work of paranoia and pursuit， lászló krasznahorkai's chasing homer （mindig homérosznak） finds the hungarian master interpolating the classic greek author （odysseus， calypso） in a place of shelter will be ruled by terror and miscalculation， whereas out here in the open， i keep reminding myself even as i keep looking quickly over my shoulder， that that's out of the question， out here—facing forward again—it's just a state of constant， ceaseless， ever-present vigilance。 an absolutely magnificent work of paranoia and pursuit， lászló krasznahorkai's chasing homer （mindig homérosznak） finds the hungarian master interpolating the classic greek author （odysseus， calypso） in a taut tale of tense foreboding and meticulous evasion。 on the run for decades （"or at least for years， months， weeks now"）， the novella's nameless narrator is being chased by killers hellbent on hunting down their elusive prey。 krasznahorkai's protagonist is like a scintillating amalgamation of a pessoan heteronym and bernhardian temperament， afflicted by a kafkaesque ordeal all the while conveying a ruminative， reflective character and chronicling the clever stratagems necessary to avoid detection and stay alive。 [。。。]and so your relation to your own insanity is best characterized by a perpetual ambiguity， wherein you yourself， as well as your insanity， exist in a permanent， billowing state of potentiality， exactly as you yourself， willingly bearing it and embodying it， do question it， because your insanity has not yet emerged from its haziness[。。。] krasznahorkai's newest is also a multimedia work enriching the textual with both audial and visual elements。 chasing homer includes haunting， abstract color paintings by german artist max neumann （see also krasznahorkai's animalinside） and the eerie percussion-based music of hungarian jazz drummer szilveszter miklós （with a short piece for each chapter accessible via qr code and/or a publisher-hosted url）。 no， i despise questions， for after all， and this cannot be repeated enough， i despise answers as well， the only thing that exists for me is the spontaneous， the unpremeditated， the bewildering act and its concomitant terror， and the wherefore of getting away， that's all there is， to be quicker than those who are after me in order to douse me with gasoline in revenge for the length of time it took them to capture me， grinning as they bring the lighter's flame very slowly closer and closer to my body， so that i could say， under duress， that when you stand there paralyzed and stinking， doused with gasoline， and see the flame of that lighter getting closer and closer， and when you still just manage to feel yourself being slightly lifted by the propulsive force of the explosion， only to have your small body spatter into tiny fragments before it's consumed， go ahead and try querying then about such things as: what is life。 *translated from the hungarian by john batki （krúdy， józsef， et al。） 。。。more

Dario Malic ，

László rijetko promašuje。 I ovdje je gotovo svaka rečenica/poglavlje iznimno interesantna。 Ipak， kraj mi je malo slabiji od ostatka。

Elma ，

NeNije se predao。

Erika Fábián ，

A félelem megeszi a lelket。。。 Ez jut eszembe az állandó menekülésről， szóval hatott rám a könyv。 De vajon lehet-e előkészítés nélkül átéreztetni a rettegést？ Vagy az csak szimpla üldözési mánia？Krasznahorkai kiváló író， egy ilyen magas színtű， mondhatni veretes szöveget bármikor meg tud írni - de emlékezni inkább Estikére fogok a Sátántangóból， ott állt össze Krasznahorkai világképe és még hozott képek sem kellettek hozzá。。。

Kuszma ，

Réges-régen， egy messzi， messzi galaxisban。-tSzia Klárikám！ Itt vagyok a könyvesboltban。 -tIgen， Gyuri。 És？-tHolnap lesz a Marci bácsi születésnapja， valamit venni kéne neki， könyvre gondoltam。-tAkkor vegyél könyvet， Gyuri。-tDe mit szokott a Marci bácsi olvasni， Klárikám？ -tMit tudom én， Gyuri。 Bonyolultakat。 Hosszú mondatok vannak bennük， én még a címüket se értem。 Kortárs irodalom， úgy hívják。-tDe akkor mit csináljak？ Van itt vagy tízezer könyv， Klári！ Én meg nem értek a művészethez， egyszer v Réges-régen， egy messzi， messzi galaxisban。-tSzia Klárikám！ Itt vagyok a könyvesboltban。 -tIgen， Gyuri。 És？-tHolnap lesz a Marci bácsi születésnapja， valamit venni kéne neki， könyvre gondoltam。-tAkkor vegyél könyvet， Gyuri。-tDe mit szokott a Marci bácsi olvasni， Klárikám？ -tMit tudom én， Gyuri。 Bonyolultakat。 Hosszú mondatok vannak bennük， én még a címüket se értem。 Kortárs irodalom， úgy hívják。-tDe akkor mit csináljak？ Van itt vagy tízezer könyv， Klári！ Én meg nem értek a művészethez， egyszer voltam veled színházban， akkor is csak azért， mert eldugtad a távirányítót。-tKérdezzél meg egy eladót， Gyuri。 Biztos dolgozik ott valaki。 （…）-tNa， Klárikám， megint én vagyok。 Találtam itt egy fiatalembert， azt mondta， van ez a Krasznahorkai。 Nagyon híres író， nyert külföldi díjakat is。 Baromi hosszú mondatai vannak， tényleg。 Békéscsabáig leér a végük。-tJól van， Gyuri， vedd meg a legújabbat。 Miről szól？-tAzt mondja a fiatalember， hogy， idézem: a tömegember magány utáni szomjúhozásának kivetülése， egyfajta paranoid mélyfúrás （bár pont Krasznahorkaitól láttunk mélyebbet is - ezt így halkan vetette közbe， Klárikám， de én meghallottam）， erős ógörög áthallásokkal。 Vannak benne képek is， bár nem világos， mit ábrázolnak。 Meg appok。-tMi az az app， Gyuri？-tIlyen okostelefonos izé。-tJól van， Gyuri， vedd meg。 Mennyibe fáj？-tNégy ezresbe。-tBelefér。 Úgy emlékszem， ő a te születésnapodra ötért vett valamit。 Vegyél hozzá egy üveg bort is， aztán rendben vagyunk。-tJól van， Klári。 Viszhal！（…）-tSzia Klárikám！ Itt vagyok a borszaküzletben。-tHagyjál， Gyuri。 。。。more

Cipőfűző ，

Átélhető， sűrű， zaklatott szöveg， a hanganyag még rátesz egy lapáttal。 A lezárás metaforikus felütése is kétségek közt hagyó， hogy egyáltalán metafora-e。

Varga Zsolt ，

。。。Nekem ez a könyv üres volt， közhelyes， érdektelen， minden világirodalmi utalása ellenére önmagába zárt szöveg， amit sem a képek， sem a hivatkozott zenék nem tudtak megnyitni。 Oké， látszik rajta， hogy Krasznahorkai dolgozott rajta， megcsinálta， de minek？。。。https://vargarockzsolt。blog。hu/2019/1。。。 。。。Nekem ez a könyv üres volt， közhelyes， érdektelen， minden világirodalmi utalása ellenére önmagába zárt szöveg， amit sem a képek， sem a hivatkozott zenék nem tudtak megnyitni。 Oké， látszik rajta， hogy Krasznahorkai dolgozott rajta， megcsinálta， de minek？。。。https://vargarockzsolt。blog。hu/2019/1。。。 。。。more

Reference

google book https://www.google.com/search?tbm=bks&q=Chasing Homer

hathitrust digital library https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/ls?q1=Chasing Homer&field1=ocr&a=srchls&ft=ft&lmt=ft

The British Library https://bll01.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/discovery/search?query=any,contains,Chasing Homer&tab=LibraryCatalog&search_scope=Not_BL_Suppress&vid=44BL_INST:BLL01&lang=en&offset=0