E. T. A. Hoffmann

After hearing how her toy nutcracker got his ugly face, a little girl helps break the spell and changes him into a handsome prince.

The Nutcracker

The charismatic monk Medardus becomes implicated in a deadly mystery against his will. As he travels towards Rome he wrestles with the enigma of his own identity while pursued by his murderous doppelganger. The monk's only hope for salvation lies with the beautiful Aurelie; but in order to escape the curse which lies over his family, he must evade the sinister powers of the living and the dead. In this lively and disturbing gothic tale, Hoffmann combines elements of the fantastic and the sublime to analyse the seductive ambiguities of art and the deeply divided nature of the human imagination.

The Devil's Elixirs

Peter Wortsman

Sandman

After hearing how her toy nutcracker got his ugly face, a little girl helps break the spell and watches him change into a handsome prince.

Nutcracker

The story begins with a series of letters between Nathanael, his fiancée Clara, and her brother Lothar. Nathanael describes a childhood fear of a creature called The Sandman who was said to come at night and steal the eyes of children, which intermingled with a the appearance of a man named Coppelius in his father's room some nights to work on what appears to have been alchemy. This man once attacked Nathanael, threatening to take his eyes, and later killed his father before disappearing.

The Sandman

Der Sandmann

Jack Zipes

Karen Russell

Natalie Frank

The Traumatic Tales of E. T. A. Hoffmann

Wounded Storyteller

Introducing Little Clothbound Classics: irresistible, mini editions of short stories, novellas and essays from the world's greatest writers, designed by the award-winning Coralie Bickford-Smith. Celebrating the range and diversity of Penguin Classics, they take us from snowy Japan to springtime Vienna, from haunted New England to a sun-drenched Mediterranean island, and from a game of chess on the ocean to a love story on the moon. Beautifully designed and printed, these collectible editions are bound in colourful, tactile cloth and stamped with foil. The gift of a handsomely decorated, enigmatic nutcracker sets the stage for a Christmas like no other: there will be legends of ancient curses, battles with the dreaded Mouse King, and a visit to the wonderful Kingdom of Dolls. The inspiration for the classic ballet, E. T. A. Hoffmann's irresistible tale of magic and mystery continues to be the perfect encapsulation of a child's wonder at Christmas.

This early work by E. T. A. Hoffmann was originally published in 1814. Born in Königsberg, East Prussia in 1776, Hoffmann's family were all jurists, and during his youth he was initially encouraged to pursue a career in law. However, in his late teens Hoffman became increasingly interested in literature and philosophy, and spent much of his time reading German classicists and attending lectures by, amongst others, Immanuel Kant. Hoffman went on to produce a great range of both literary and musical works. Probably Hoffman's most well-known story, produced in 1816, is 'The Nutcracker and the Mouse King', due to the fact that – some seventy-six years later - it inspired Tchaikovsky's ballet The Nutcracker. In the same vein, his story 'The Sandman' provided both the inspiration for Léo Delibes's ballet Coppélia, and the basis for a highly influential essay by Sigmund Freud, called 'The Uncanny'. (Indeed, Freud referred to Hoffman as the "unrivalled master of the uncanny in literature.") Many of the earliest books, particularly those dating back to the 1900's and before, are now extremely scarce and increasingly expensive. We are republishing these classic works in affordable, high quality, modern editions.

The Golden Flower Pot (Fantasy and Horror Classics)

Ernst Theodor Amadeus Hoffmann (1776-1822), eigentlich Ernst Theodor Wilhelm, war ein Schriftsteller der Romantik, Jurist, Komponist, Kapellmeister, Musikkritiker, Zeichner und Karikaturist. Aus familiarer Tradition begann Hoffmann 1792 das Studium der Rechte in KA nigsberg. Nebenbei widmete er sich dem Schreiben, dem Musizieren, dem Zeichnen und gab Musikunterricht. Hoffmann entschied sich jedoch spater, die Amtsstube hinter sich zu lassen und Kunstler zu werden. Von 1810 an war Hoffmann beim Bamberger Theater als Direktionsgehilfe, Dramaturg und Dekorationsmaler beschaftigt. Die VerA ffentlichung des Marchens Der Goldene Topf (1814) waren ein Erfolg, an dem Hoffmann mit der Arbeit an dem Roman Die Elixiere des Teufels (1815) und den Nachtstucke (1817) anknupfen wollte. 1816 wurde Hoffmann zum Kammergerichtsrat ernannt. Der nach ihm benannte Bamberger Literaturpreis wird alle 2 Jahre verliehen. Weitere Werke des Autors sind u. a.: Die Serapionsbruder (1819), Prinzessin Brambilla (1820), Meister Floh (1822) und Des Vetters Eckfenster (1822).

Der Goldene Topf

Zamanimizin Bir Masali

Altin Canak

Hoffmanns Erzählung dreht sich ganz um das Thema der Spiegelung und des Doppelgängertums. Der Autor treibt dieses Spiel bis in die intertextuelle Ebene - Er lässt Peter Schlemihl auftreten, den Helden aus Chamissos berühmter Geschichte, die Hoffmann in seinem Werk zu spiegeln unternimmt.

Die Abentheuer der Sylvester-Nacht

Jim Rockhill

And Other Night Pieces

The Sand-Man

E.T.A. Hoffmanns Erzählung von 1819 vereinigt alle spannenden Elemente einer Detektivgeschichte: Am Beginn steht ein Mord, da ist ein Verdächtiger, der seine Unschuld beteuert, und dem alten Fräulein von Scuderi, einer Dichterin, ist es vorbehalten, durch Weisheit und untrügliche Sicherheit des Gefühls den düsteren Fall aufzuklären. Text aus Reclams Universal-Bibliothek mit Seitenzählung der gedruckten Ausgabe.

Erzählung aus dem Zeitalter Ludwig des Vierzehnten (Reclams Universal-Bibliothek)

Das Fräulein von Scuderi

Alexandre Dumas

The original stories behind everyone's favorite Christmas ballet It wasn't until the 1950s that seeing The Nutcracker at Christmastime became an American tradition. But the story itself is much older and its original intent more complex. This eye-opening new volume presents two of the tale's earliest versions, both in new translations: E.T.A. Hoffmann's Nutcracker and Mouse King (1816), in which a young girl is whisked away to the Land of Toys to help her animated nutcracker defeat the Mouse King, and Alexandre Dumas's 1845 adaptation, The Tale of the Nutcracker, based on Hoffmann's popular work. Irresistible tales of magic, mystery, and childhood adventure, these timeless delights and fresh interpretations about the importance of imagination will captivate readers of all ages. For more than seventy years, Penguin has been the leading publisher of classic literature in the English-speaking world. With more than 1,700 titles, Penguin Classics represents a global bookshelf of the best works throughout history and across genres and disciplines. Readers trust the series to provide authoritative texts enhanced by introductions and notes by distinguished scholars and contemporary authors, as well as up-to-date translations by award-winning translators.

Nutcracker and Mouse King and The Tale of the Nutcracker

Kedi Murr'un Dünya Görüsü

EN Nochebuena una ni�a espera junto a su hermano la llegada del Ni�o Jes�s. Cuando sus padres abren la puerta del sal�n, se encuentran ante una imagen maravillosa: un �rbol de Navidad iluminado por cientos de velitas y cargado de los juguetes y golosinas m�s estupendos que pueden imaginar. El padrino de ambos ha construido un fabuloso castillo por el que pasean y danzan elegantes damas y caballeros. Su hermano ha recibido un astuto zorro rojo y un batall�n de h�sares con espadas y caballos de plata. Y la ni�a se enamora del �ltimo, escondido bajo el �rbol: es Cascanueces. Lectura recomendada a partir de 12 a�os.

El Cascanueces y el Rey de Los Ratones

El Cascanueces

Contes fantastiques

Idealizada por Fernando Sabino, a coleção Novelas Imortais reúne narrativas breves de autores de grandes clássicos universais, como Miguel de Cervantes, Herman Melville, R. L. Stevenson, Gustave Flaubert, Henry James, E. T. A. Hoffmann, entre outros. São pequenas obras-primas selecionadas e apresentadas pelo escritor mineiro que voltam às prateleiras com o objetivo de difundir obras talvez menos conhecidas, mas não menos geniais, de escritores consagrados, agora ao alcance dos jovens brasileiros. Aclamado como um dos mais expressivos novelistas alemães, Hoffmann influenciou uma série de grandes escritores com suas histórias de terror e mistério – de Baudelaire, Maupassant, Poe e Dostoievski a Álvares de Azevedo e Fagundes Varella, para citar dois brasileiros –, graças a um "poder de imaginação que o levava às fronteiras da clarividência", conforme destaca Fernando Sabino no texto de apresentação do livro. De fato, seu "senso do grotesco, do mórbido, do fantástico, do sobrenatural – e sua extraordinária intuição ao penetrar nos domínios do subconsciente, como verdadeiro precursor das explorações da moderna psicologia", novamente nas palavras de Sabino, garantiram ao escritor lugar de destaque na literatura universal. O homem da areia reúne as principais características da obra de E. T. A. Hoffmann. Nesta novela, publicada em 1817, o autor apresenta o jovem Natanael por meio de cartas escritas ao amigo Lothar, irmão de sua noiva Clara. Perturbado por uma visita inesperada que o remete a uma sinistra lembrança de infância e provoca nele os mais inquietantes pressentimentos, Natanael conta em suas cartas a história do Homem da Areia, segundo a família do menino um homem perverso que jogava areia nos olhos das crianças para depois arrancá-los e comê-los, quando elas não queriam dormir. Mergulhando o protagonista numa espiral de medo, tensão e loucura que o leva ao manicômio, Hoffmann conduz a trama para um desfecho assustador e surpreendente.

E. T. A. Hoffmann

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