Book Reviews

We love to read! In this section we will introduce you on a monthly basis to different novels, criminal stories, fairy tales, short stories or any other literaturary style, which take place or were written in the Alps. We will try to give you a broad overview of renown authors as well as newcomers and contemporary writers. And we will mention which of these books are suitable as a companion to your next trip to the Alps.

 

Reading about Liechtenstein

Dittmar, Jens (Hg.): Europa erlesen: Liechtenstein. Wieser. 2000

What do we already know about Liechtenstein? Usually not much. But if one puts in all in relation, knowing the size of Liechtenstein and that this small, pretty country inhabits 35,000 people (some of which are just in Austria or Switzerland studying) then yes, then you know a lot about Liechtenstein and one realizes she got to know 0.1 per mille of the inhabitants had even personally knows 10% of the roads. Can you say that about another country in the world?
Liechtensteiner among the readers, are not amused, if the only thing they read about their Liechtenstein is that it is petite. But at least we do not did not begin with Liechtenstein as a tax haven (an aspect where noone would talk about picayune businesses).

But that is what we are not trying to tell, but about a whole book, only Liechtenstein (okay well, but this is only an insider joke that there is a nation smaller than Austria).
In 57 articles, stories and poems by Hans Weigel, Loretta Federspiel, Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, Jean Paul, Herman Hesse, Clemens Brentano, Walter Benjamin, Friedrich Dürrenmatt, Thomas Bernhard and many more dealing with Liechtenstein, its capital Vaduz and the Liechtensteiner.
And what we read is: " 'With the heart in Austria, with his head in Switzerland:" the Liechtensteiner say if there is no Swiss listening. " according to George Mikes, Ludwig Hevesi calls Liechtenstein „unterlebensgroß“ what means „smaller than life“ and for Alexandre Dumas Liechtenstein was only rain and sauerkraut.
We travel by Schaan, Vaduz, experience Almabtriebe (the moving down of cattle from the mountains), tourism 100 years ago with several beds in a room and made of fresh hay, we walk past the Triesnerberg and overlook the Rhine Valley.

And page by page, tales, legends, poems later we learn more and more on Liechtenstein then and now. The spots on the map turn to hills, mountains and meadows and if we are not already there, we know that we want to get there.
A wonderful literary guide, highly recommended, like the other books in the series „Europe erlesen“ by Wieser publishing house. Books are available in German.