"Nathan the Wise" is one of the greatest and wisest dramas I ever read, not only the picturesque and interesting backround but also the wise, idealistic and forwardlooking image that the author produces makes the drama worth being read by everybody. Lessing wrote this drama two-hundred years ago and that fact makes it even more interesting to see the message that it tries to spread, because in our-days-world the demand for humanity and tolerance is more important than ever.

To write a history text which is so broad in definition but so inaccessible to the casual reader makes this a pretentious read. As a historian, there is much that is up for debate in his first three chapters - and that is not always clear. And some of his points, (eg. that the root of Slav is from the word "sklavenoi", meaning slave) has long been out of vogue among Slavic historians. Parts are fun to read, but I believe the greatness of the text is hyperbolic.

As with some of the other reviewers, I am glad I read this AFTER I visited Prague. It is best not read cover to cover, but use the index to read about the things you want to learn more about. Otherwise, you will be overwhelmed by personal names and places in a language most of us are unaccustomed to. Don't lie to me & tell me you will remember it all! (smile). (Unless you are an expert in Slavic languages).

I have just returned from my first trip Prague and Ostrava. The history of the region is a bit confusing to us who are not familiar with this part of the world. This is an important part of the world, after all the genesis of the First World War is connected to the Bohemian Prince who was also a successor to the Habsburg throne.

Professor Demetz provides a comprehensive background to the history of the country, the intrigues and policitical fights that went on this part of the world. He provides a lively discussion of a serious subject. Prague went through a great number of battles and the people here were well involved with many events that rocked the European politics and religion.

Demetz is from Prague where he grew up and was a victim of anti-semitic tide that swept across Europe. This makes his story so human. This is not a dispassionate history book. I recommend this book to you, if are interested to know a bit more about the Czech republic and its people.

I think that this book is a forgery by appenine fascist youth. Like most of this book's readers, they took their master plan far too seriously. It's this inability to laugh which makes the work canonical, but nonetheless a product of unknown authorship.

Reflections presents for the reader the great range that Benjamin had as a writer, critic and occidentalist. This collection further demonstrates Benjamin's acute awareness of the literature of his time, as evidenced by his essay on 'Surrealism', which is as fine a reflection on its themes as the manifestos of Andre Breton. Furthermore, his writings and conversations with Bertolt Brecht show Benjamin to be very close to the thinking of the author himself. Also included is his celebrated essay on Karl Kraus,"the Jewish Swift of Vienna". But what I like most about this collection are the amorphisms and autobiographical sketches of 'Marseilles' and 'One-way Street'. In his images of Marseilles Benjamin creates an "exegesis of the city" that is as fine as any poet could offer; spellbinding, acute, and beautiful. As well, his wit and insight into social phenomena is detailed in 'One-Way Street', and also in the piece on Moscow, which lets the western reader experience a rare witnessing of the Russian city in the years after the Revolution in a way that recalls Dziga Vertov. Finally, the inclusion of several pieces of Benjamin's philosophical-theological speculations show that he was a man of great breath and wisedom, and further showcase the wide range of his highly polished mind.

"Walter Benjamin is now recognized as one of the most accute analysts of literary and sociological phenomena of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. A companion volume to Illuminations, the earlier collection of Benjamin's writings, Reflections presents a new sampling of his wide-ranging work. In addition to literary criticism, it contains autobiograohical narration and travel pieces, aphorisms, and philosophical-theological speculations. Most of Benjamin's writings on Brecht and his celebrated essay on Karl Kraus are included."

Enjoy charming anecdotes like "Hashish in Marseilles" and the sardonic incites of "One-Way Street" (Germans, Drink German Beer!) as you peruse the timeless thoughts of a persecuted man.