REVIEW BY RYAN MIHALY
Odyssey Bookshop (South Hadley, MA)
(á la Walser)
Permit me to say that any connoisseur of rich and shall we say interesting literature, a literature that definitely contains at least an ounce of charm and perhaps a quantity of foolhardy yet clever over-the-toppishness, will want to swiftly place this marvelous book authored by the curious individual known by the name Robert Walser among the many other fine books that surely stand in their lively and no doubt excellent bookshelf. Contained within are stories of a tiny yet dense nature, full to the brim, so to speak, with often the most ordinary of circumstances described most circumspectly, though in hardly any off-putting manner, quite the contrary, in fact I find the stories, originally scribed on the backs of ephemeral papers in an antiquated German shorthand which we the readers are so fortunately granted the opportunity to gaze upon as we turn the pleasant pages of this book, to be rather welcoming, warm, and of a sincere variety, and no doubt so roundabout and overly polite and in some ways bureaucratic which, thrown together, construct a style that, taken as a whole, inspires not only bouts of laughter but also a sort of brilliant feeling in the mind, a sensation only the finest art can produce. I have no doubt that even the most casual and careless reader would still find much to delight in this magnificent tome, and to these final remarks I must hastily add that I wholeheartedly encourage any and all who have the ways and means to procure this book to do so soon, for the splendid effect it will have on their soul will certainly be a boon.
Microscripts is translated from the German by Susan Bernofsky and included illustrations by Maira Kalman. Published by Christine Burgin/New Directions and distributed to the trade by W.W. Norton & Company.
$24.95 PB 160 pages with color illustrations ISBN: 978-081121880 Pub date: July 2014
