Terminé hier soir cette « exofiction » impressionnante sur le GRAND Thomas Mann et sa famille.
Ce matin, comme à mon habitude, j’ai fouillé sur le « ouuebb » afin de trouver une critique singulière qui s’approcherait de mon propre avis. Parmi toutes, c’est celle de mon « ami Facebook » Jacques Desrosiers
qui est nettement la plus intéressante ( cliquez sur le lien ci-desous).
C’est vrai que l’œuvre de Mann comme tel passe quasi inaperçu et qu’on aurait aimé suivre, par exemple, la genèse des Histoires de Joseph (à mon humble avis, Joseph et ses frères est un exceptionnel chef d’œuvre) mais je pense que Toibin avait des intentions plus modestes en écrivant ces 600 pages (tout de même).
Pour celles et ceux qui aimeraient aller plus loin sur l’œuvre même, il y a le livre (en français) de Maurice Godé.

https://www.lacauselitteraire.fr/le-magicien-colm-toibin-par-jacques-desrosiers?...

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Pour paraphraser une page de Lescure sur Bachelard lu ce matin même, ne pourrait-on pas penser - a contrario à ce que nous laisse croire ce type d’exofiction (même bien documentée) dans lequel il devient impossible de démêler le vrai du faux, le vraisemblable du purement inventé pcq l’anecdote ajoutée semble, par exemple, particulièrement « piquante » / tout est-il permis? ) l’œuvre de Mann n’a peut-être pas dominé la vie mais, du moins, CQFD, s’est construite malgré la vie?
En d’autres mots, « le problème reste entier: comment un homme peut-il, malgré la vie, devenir poète ? » (Poétique de la rêverie) ( )

An impressive novel based on the life and work of Thomas Mann, this book extends Colm Toibin's foray into biographical fiction following his novel,The Master, based on the life of Henry James. Having read most of Mann's oeuvre and biographies of the author, I came to this book with a background that made reading it easier, while providing a basis for criticism of a kind that someone unfamiliar with the work of Mann may not have.

The book's title comes from a scene in which Mann's son Klaus became alarmed by what he thought to be a monster in his room. Mann claimed to be a magician and promised to expel the beast using magic. Since the plan worked, his six children referred to him as the magician. However, the word has a deeper meaning in Tóibin's book since Mann is a character who has the ability to work magic with words, whether in his books, letters, or speeches.

This book is a work of magic by Tóibin, himself. He has given the reader an intimate look at a great writer who lived with contradictions by bringing Thomas Mann to life in stunning prose. His recognition as one of the greatest writers of the 20th century was at odds with his hesitant and secretive inner life. His happy marriage to Katia and their six children also was at odds with his repressed homosexuality, while his love of Germany and its culture was at odds with the Nazi ideology he loathed.

Tóibin explores the themes of living abroad, the creative process, and the preservation of personal identity (and in particular, homosexual identity) throughout the majority of his works. These issues are explored in The Magician through Thomas Mann's difficulties with them. It was enjoyable to read as it painted an exceptional writer's life in moving prose. I hope it would encourage those who have not experienced Mann's magnificent oeuvre to explore some of his many now classic novels, stories, and essays. ( )

The Magician by Colm Toibin is an odd book--using a real character-Thomas Mann-in a fictional novel. I felt very distanced from Thomas Mann--he never came to life as a character. His obsession with the beauty of men held some interest but eventually became creepy. ( )

Very long novelization of the life of famed German writer Thomas Mann, an author whose works I do not know at all. The third person narrative is very straight -ahead, without any time shifting or changes in point of view, for which I was very grateful. We are always in the mind of Thomas. Understandably, for that time and place, rather than live his life as a gay man, he chose to marry and raise a large family. However, it comes across that hiding his true self came at enormous cost. He doesn't seem able to form intimate relationships with his wife and children and we're reminded of this on almost every page. Yet he apparently produced great literature that presumably does illuminate universal truths. Maybe that is why he is called "The Magician". ( )

I have read Buddenbrooks but don't remember much about it, and Death in Venice, with which the Visconti film adaption with Dirk Bogarde has left a much stronger impression, so I wouldn't say I'm that familiar with Thomas Mann's works, or life. But something about this book kept me reading, although the style seemed to be very much on surface while also being omniscient which I struggled with at times. ( )