The Emigrants
W.G. Sebald
1992
Around 360 pages
I feel slightly guilty that the most memorable thing about Sebald for me is that he inserts photographs in his work. I guess he gets tired of putting atrocities into words.
Our narrator recounts his involvement with and the life stories of four emigrants who have left Germany after the Holocaust. Sebald explores the impact of World War II, and what we carry with us when we leave our homeland.
Sebald is, understandably, a melancholic writer, so this is obviously going to be a tough read. He offers an interesting perspective and I appreciate that he keeps his writing tight. That displaced feeling you have when you are living in another country is hard to put into words, even in non wartime circumstances. The pictures are always a bit jarring, but maybe he was super into scrapbooking.
RATING: ***--
Interesting Facts:
Sebald credited Thomas Bernhard as a major influence in his work.
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