The Silent Prophet
By Joseph Roth
1929
First Published
3.66
Average Rating
208
Number of Pages
Because he is born illegitimate, Friederich Kargan lacks even a social identity. Moving to Vienna, he becomes involved both in revolutionary agitation and a love affair before he is caught by the authorities on his first trip to Russia, enduring a Siberian interlude before escaping. He eventually returns to Russia after the February Revolution, becoming leader of the Red Army, but realizes during the civil war that the revolution seems to be over before it has begun; the cause has been betrayed, yesterday’s proletariat has become today’s bourgeoisie; exile might offer the only choice. A beautifully descriptive journey from loneliness into an illusory worldliness and back into loneliness, this is a haunting study in alienation by a master of realistic imagination.
Avg Rating
3.66
Number of Ratings
202
5 STARS
17%
4 STARS
44%
3 STARS
29%
2 STARS
9%
1 STARS
1%
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