The Trial: A New Translation Based on the Restored Text by Franz Kafka published by Schocken (1999)

An excellent translation of an amazing, classic book. This deeply ambiguous masterpiece is unsettling as hell.

"The Trial," by Franz Kafka translated by Breon MitchellOne might find this book difficult to understand, but I suggest before you read any further to avoid the `Forward,' and delve right into the first chapter which is The Arrest. I found reading the book this way gave me hope of the injustice Josef K. endured. This is another form of Surveillance State writing without hope for any individual...interesting read and a fine drama. This is a dystopian novel of controlled society with many quirks as a THX-1138 film.

I give this three stars not because of the book, which is one of my favorites of all time and definitely gets five stars but because of the edition. The edition I have is the first Schocken paperback edition released in 1968. This edition (the paperback) has two postscripts by Kafka's close friend, Max Brod and an incredible set of appendices and original illustrations. All of these are missing from the hard cover copy which supposedly is from the Schocken library. This was a gift to a lawyer and I'm disappointed that she won't get the full enjoyment that I have received from reading and rereading this book (I always reread whenever I get involved with the legal system, for whatever reason). The novel is fantastic, however it is too bad I picked the wrong edition as a gift.(I couldn't find an original edition copy.)

. . . but this is the first of his works that I've read and it's puzzling to me that I've waited so long! People taking advantage of this humble review can find a synopsis of The Trial just about anywhere: It's the tale of Josef K., a successful, self-centered, arrogant young man who is accused of an unspecified crime and becomes, shall we say, unravelled by the prosecution. Anybody who has had the pleasure of dealing with a bureaucracy will relate to and appreciate K.'s dilemma. Kafka has delivered a rich, compelling, well-paced story and I relish the thought that there is much, much that he has written for me to explore.

You know the expression "I'll have what the gentleman on the floor is having?" I'd sooner have what Kafka was taking, although in his writing there may be no floor. People suddenly appear in corners previously vpod of human life, logical questions are never answered. We never find out why the protagonist was arrested. And I'm not even sure what happened to him in the end. Somehow the reading experience is enjoyable, however. And certainly one of a kind.

product exceeded expectations.

It's Kafka, what's not to like? It may be a new translation that is more nuanced, but the story is essentially the same. Some of the nuances get lost in the surreal action. Lots of fun...

This book is very prophetic and scary. This is the exact persecutions Christians are facing all over the world. We are being put in kangaroo courts and being accused of absurd charges that have no merit whatsoever. Liberals want to make it a crime to be a Christian. Our freedom of religion is being taken away. They're putting up a statue of Satan in Oklahoma's stakehouse! Not of the Ten Commandments, BUT OF SATAN! Read this book and open your eyes to whats going on in the world.