The portage to San Cristobal of A.H

by George Steiner

Paper Book, 1981

Status

Available

Call number

F STE

Collection

Publication

London : Faber, 1981.

Description

Imagine, thirty years after the end of World War II, Israeli Nazi-hunters, some of whom lost relatives in the gas chambers of Nazi Germany, find a silent old man deep in the Amazon jungle. He is Adolph Hitler. The narrative that follows is a profound and disturbing exploration of the nature of guilt, vengeance, language, and the power of evil--each undiminished over time. George Steiner's stunning novel, now with a new afterword, will continue to provoke our thinking about Nazi Germany's unforgettable past. "Two readings have convinced me that this is a fiction of extraordinary power and thoughtfulness. . . . [A] remarkable novel."--Bernard Bergonzi, Times Literary Supplement "In this tour de force Mr. Steiner makes his reader re-examine, to whatever conclusions each may choose, a history from which we would prefer to avert our eyes."--Edmund Fuller, Wall Street Journal "Portage largely avoids both the satisfactions of the traditional novel and the horrifying details of Holocaust literature. Instead, Steiner has taken as his model the political imaginings of an Orwell or Koestler. . . . He has produced a philosophic fantasy of remarkable intensity."--Otto Friedrich, Time… (more)

User reviews

LibraryThing member the_awesome_opossum
This is a novella written around the premise that Hitler had faked his own death, and now, as a weakened old man, he has finally been caught. As people learn of his capture, controversies arise as what exactly to *do* with him now that we have him. To paraphrase one of the characters, even if
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Hitler were dipped in boiling oil six million times, still none of the dead would sit up in their graves and brush the dirt from their bodies.

This could have been a very excellent book, but sadly it plodded along through all of the scenes that didn't have Hitler in them (he was, strangely, a very compelling character) and too much of the story was simply unfocused. The end, where Hitler finally gets to say his piece in his defense, goes creepily uncontested and, it felt, tried to raise sympathies where there really shouldn't be any. Very strange book that raised many interesting questions, but failed to answer most of them
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Awards

Language

Original publication date

1979 (Kenyon Review)

Physical description

126 p.; 20 inches

ISBN

0571117414 / 9780571117413

Local notes

Donated by the Estate of Earle Hoffman October 2020
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