Fiction
Biljard v Dobrayu/Billiards at the Hotel Dobray
by Dušan Šarotar
Description
In the centre of Murska Sobota stands the renowned Hotel Dobray, once the gathering place of townspeople of all nationalities and social strata who lived in this small town in the middle of Prekmurje, a typical Pannonian panorama on the fringe of the Austro-Hungarian monarchy. The town had always been home to numerous ethnically and culturally mixed communities that gave it the charm and melos of Central-European identity. But now, in the thick of World War II, the town is occupied by the Hungarian army.
Franz Schwartz’s wife Ellsie has for the past month been preparing their son Isaac, a gifted violinist, for his first solo concert, which is to take place at Hotel Dobray. Isaac is to perform on his bar mitzvah on 26 April 1944. When the German army marches into town and forces all Jews to display yellow stars on their clothes, Ellsie advises her husband that the family should flee the town. Schwartz promises her he will obtain forged documents, but not before Isaac performs his concert at the hotel.
A year later, in March 1945, Schwartz returns, on foot, alone from the concentration camp as one of the few survivors.
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Argentina (EDUVIM)
Croatia (Fraktura)
Hungary (Pannónia)
Poland (Miedzymorze)
UK (Istros Books)
Endorsements
Šarotar’s prose can hardly find any parallel in literature. What does come to my mind, however, is a cinematic one: the Hungarian master of slowness Béla Tarr, directing screenplays written by László Krasznahorkai. – Večer
Reviews
Billiards at Hotel Dobray is a book written with masterly skill. Šarotar takes his time and his narration glides slowly among the stories and people’s destinies and across the landscape; a book bereft of all radicality. The eye’s gaze from way up in the air is cool, distanced, almost indifferent to people’s destinies; as if they were looked upon from a great distance, temporal as well spatial, and the destinies of individuals were almost entirely insignificant specks in a more broadly outlined picture. – LUD Literatura
The key specific poetic trait of the author is his marked synergy of lyrical rhythms and the rhythm of prose. With its dense apocalyptic imagery, the poetic quality of the language assumes a fable-like role. – Sodobnost
Well versed as a narrator, Šarotar skilfully knits all the aspects of narration together, which results in a fresh, pleasant and carefully reflected approach bringing together two great literary qualities: lack of pretence and authenticity. – AirBeletrina
Author Biography
Dušan Šarotar (1968) is a writer, poet, screenwriter and photographer. He has published five novels, two collections of short stories, three poetry collections and a book of essays. He is also the author of fifteen screenplays for documentary and feature films. His short film Mario Was Watching the Sea with Love (Mario je gledal morje z zaljubljenimi očmi), based on short stories from his collection Blind Spot (Mrtvi kot), won the 2016 Global Short Film Award in New York and the first prize in Ningbo, China, for best short film. Šarotar’s novels, stories and poems have been translated into several languages. Two of his novels, Billiards at the Dobray Hotel (Biljard v Dobrayu, 2007) and Panorama (2015), were nominated for the Kresnik Award for best novel of the year. Šarotar has also had several photographic exhibitions in national galleries and abroad.
Beletrina Academic Press
Beletrina Academic Press, established 1996, is a leading Slovenian literary publisher that has gained its reputation by introducing prominent works of classic and contemporary world and national fiction and non-fiction to Slovenian readers. Beletrina currently represents over 20 of the best Slovenian authors, from the great classics to the biggest contemporary names and the most promising up and coming authors.
View all titlesBibliographic Information
- Publisher Beletrina Academic Press
- Orginal LanguageSlovenian
- ISBN/Identifier 9789612421342
- Publication Country or regionSlovenia
- Pages233
- ReadershipGeneral
- Publish StatusPublished
- Copyright Year2007
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