Publisher: Book Faith India
Genre: Literature/Fiction
Price: Rs.195
Rating: 8/10
In this ever changing world of today, something remains the same. That constant thing is spending time, reading, enjoying and journeying with a great book. A great book can make you happy, make you realize the things that you ordinarily will miss and provoke your thought. Journey to The East written by Hermann Hesse is one such great book.
Hermann Hesse was born in 1877 and died in 1962. He was an essayist, a novelist, short story writer and poet. He had written some of the thought provoking books like Siddartha, Steppewolf, Narcissus etc. He was awarded the Nobel prize in Literature in 1946. The book "Journey to the East" was originally written in German under the title "Die Morgenlandfahrt" in 1932. The English version of the book came out in 1952.
The story of the book is about the Journey of the League to the East in which the narrator was also a participant. The League was a secret organization in which many famous personlities were members.The time of the journey was just after end of the world war.The narrator had to undergo tests to become member of the League. After getting membership of the League, the narrator took part in the journey.They went through many trials and tribulations as they moved forward in the journey. They traveled through Swabia, Moon Ocean, Butterfly Island and many more places. The narrator described the condition and pain of a desertor. There was a League member named Leo whom the narrator believed to be a servant. But in a certain place Leo disappeared. With the disppearance of the Leo the narrator journey was abandoned. But he didn't realize that he too was a desertor to the aims and objectives of the League. At the end, he realized that he was one of the desertor. Further, Leo was actually a leader of the League.
The greatness of the book lies in the way the author told the story. He has the ability to carry the readers wherever he likes. You will not realize this till you reach the end part. Not only that you will be made to undergo the confusion which the narrator had to endure and the pain for not able to complete the journey, and the futility of his attempt to write the history of the league. All this feeling you will be able to see vividly as you enjoy the story. Herman Hesse is in fact a master story teller.
Great packages often come in small size. This saying has been proven true by the book. The story is very short. It has only 93 pages to completely narrate the story. However, it is a treasure trove of wisdom. There are many quotes which are meaningful. However, the most interesting quote is as follow
"It is the law of service. He who wishes to live long must serve, but he who wishes to rule does not live long"
The sentences use in the story are simple and the words utilize are common. Yet the wisdom and the story are out of this world. So, read it and enjoy.