The Metamorphosis and Other Stories (Barnes & Noble Classics Series)

Good read

Excellent read for someone that is just being introduced to the world of Kafka. Great samples of the stile and depth of the writer.

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

Brilliant Kafka

Metamorphosis and Other Stories provides some of Franz Kafka's best work, including the title story, of course. The Metamorphosis is easily the best story in the book, though there are other gems like "The Stoker" and "In the Penal Colony." As is the case with Kafka, some of the endings are abrupt and can leave you wanting, such as the end to "The Judgment." The one weak story in the book is "Josephine the Singer," which you learn from the introduction was the last piece he ever wrote as he was dying of illness. A must-have for Kafka fans everywhere.

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

Moving

Out of the book, I only read 'The Metamorphosis.' It was a school assignment, and I thought it would be incredibly dull, but in fact, the story is fast paced, bizarre, and full of irony and dark humor while still expressing the depths of human nature. I was deeply moved by 'The Metamorphosis,' and I recommend it wholeheartedly to anyone who enjoys reading.

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

A great work and read!

Franz Kafka is one of my all time favorite writers. The Metamorphosis is a wonderfully written story that relies heavily on dialogue, inner monologue and subtle clues rather than big plot twists although it does establish a solid plot line, just one that is not filled with action in every page. There is a great deal of attention being paid to details so it's important to follow it up.
Change is the main theory behind this book, obviously as the name suggests and how humans handle change, our responsibilities that effects the changes we go through and an ugly side of parent and child relationships.
The language is a lot different than one a native English speaker is used to, Kafka's use of language, diction and descriptions are quite different than one may be used to. However it creates a great contrast and highlights the differences between U.S. English writers and those of others,which enables one to discover different mentalities in humanity.

It's a great read with delightful language that made the mirage of fiction more into a reality for me. Though I must admit, a lot of people have difficulty with this book. So approach it with a grain of salt and an open mind.

Really tough reading..

I found the stories slow and monotonous. The idea of The Metamorphosis sounds interesting, but I found it rather boring. I was initially drawn to this book because of Franz Kafka's influences on German culture and various authors. But by modern day times, this book is just too tedious.

0 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

No

I was a sophmore in highschool when I read this book and i hated it, along with most people that I talk to

0 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

Why the dung beetle?

I must be missing some metaphors or something cause im upset at the ending.

Strange but good

There is a reason that "kafkaesque" means "surreal." The short stories in this book read like dreams/nightmares you would have after eating ham and sauerkraut pizza immediately before bed. I enjoyed their strangeness and trying to figure out what point (if any) Kafka was trying to make in them (alienation seems to be a recurring theme).

Good short read

If you are looking for a short novel that has more than one layer---Kafkha is the right author for you! He will make you think!

Interesting Collection

This particular edition of Franz Kafka's stories includes some lesser known works with more popular ones. The standout stories for me are "The Metamorphosis" and "The Hunger Artist". The translations were great and did not use too many esoteric words. Some of the stories were just a little boring for my tastes, like In The Penal Colony. Kafka's stories are all strange, but they all have profound messages.

How to explain why Kafka was a master?

The guy's writing is simple yet high concept... Subtle points made in blunt situations... Comedic in some scenes that discuss truly dire plots. "Metamorphosis" is a good example of that. Let's face it - a guy waking up and discovering he has turned into a bug is not a happy plot. Yet the first half of the story reads as a mild comedy - and it is not until the end and thinking about it that the really scarily sad point of the story becomes obvious.

Crazily Deep

The Metamorphosis / 978-1-411-43268-0 When I was in 9th grade, my somewhat harried teacher attempted to assign me Ovid's Metamorphosis (a collection of Greek myths) and instead assigned me Kafka's Metamorphosis. Kafka's tale is short but packed with vivid symbolism in which a young man inexplicably wakes up one day as a large roach creature and subsequently fails to turn back into a man. After a confusing night with the novel, I reported back to the befuddled teacher, and she substituted another book, much to my relief. Years later, I now reread Kafka with an adult's awe and appreciation, rather than the child's confusion. The novel is packed with deep symbolism and, even now, I could not tell you with confidence what it "means". I believe the story is of being trapped in a family that does not appreciate you, except for what you can do for them, and I believe the sad ending masks an even sadder one - that the young daughter will soon become the new symbolic 'roach' to the family, bringing in resources but never loved or appreciated. However, I have heard other interpretations, each meaningful and special. I recommend this book, but the first read through should be with a light eye, not questioning the strangeness nor looking too hard for meaning. Rather, I think Kafka is best when you allow the impressions to kind of wash over you as you go. ~ Ana Mardoll

Moderately Recommended

Metamorphosis by Kafka was a really good and interesting book. I recommend it to everyone. I believe everyone can relate to this novel in a different aspect. Whether you are a bug or an individual who is hopeless (Gregor), or you just want to learn a moral lesson about life. This book is good, but not great. It can be relevant to any person, but one can also get lost reading it. However, overall this book was an interesting book to read.

must read!

The first time I read the Metamorphosis, I did not like it at all. I was in high school and I did not understand the meaning. However now that I am in college, I see Metamorphosis in a new light.
First of all, Kafka's intricate mind is presented throughout the story. His use of atmosphere, setting, rhetoric and symbols is amazing. Even though the story is somber and in a way sicking, it is a great lesson to be learned. Like Gregor and the rest of his family, one can not know how they will react in difficult situations till they are presented with them. One's true character, in difficult situations, may transform for the better and for the worst. Over all transformation is very powerful and is, besides death, out of one's control.

Painfully boring

This was an absolutely horrible book! It was painful for me to finish even though it was only approximately 40 pages and that is saying something considering I have read books of over 1,000 pages not to mention dense works of literature such as Heart of Darkness, Jane Eyre, and Wuthering Heights. It is utterly boring and I disliked the main characters because he was the epitome of an existentialist. However if you enjoy Franz Kafka's writing style, his negative view on the world, and his depressing, unsatisfying endings I would recommend this for you.

0 out of 2 people found this review helpful.

eBook reader beware!

The eBook version contains a fraction of the short stories listed in the print version table of contents. One wonders why; perhaps to save on printing expenses;))

Strange, yes, but delightful as well

Yes, Franz Kafka is certainly one of the strangest writers of the modern age, but in literature strange is usually good. This slim volume contains several of Kafka's best-known works, including, of course, the famous "The Metamorphosis." Kafka, a pioneer of the modern short story, experimented with different lengths (to varying effects), but his shorter stories are generally the best. I actually do not believe that "The Metamorphosis" is Kafka's "magnum opus," so to speak, but fortunately, this collection features stories that are even better, including the thought-provoking "Josephine the Singer, or The Mouse People" and "The Judgment," which Kafka considered his best piece. Don't be put off by the lack of plot in Kafka's stories--he focuses much more on states of mind than storylines, often dealing with the psychological issues of isolation and hostility. If you're willing to delve deeply into the meaning of these stories, I think you will discover their true merit.

Betcha he could have flown.

eep, Metamorphosis is bizarre! The title story itself is so surreal and bleak that the entire concept of it is actually quite genuinely hysterical, there were in fact passages I laughed at for minutes at a time! At present, Metamorphosis is the only one of the stories in the book that I've finished, let alone looked at. All of the characters' reactions to almost anything are deeply disturbing, and the opening sentence is a sick mirror of the final. This one may actually have gotten me back into reading... A stunning read for a world (or perhaps, just the one) that would personally sometimes rather just read ABOUT and BUY any old 'classics' than actually READ them...

Alienated and alone.

Kafka can be summed up as one word. A genius. It is easy to see where his work was influenced by existentialism. He portrays man in his work as being isolated in a world that pays no credence to our death. He views us (or himself) as being up against the world lost in ridiculous circumstances. This is most thoroughly portrayed in The Metamorphosis. A great read for anybody that is interested in ideas behind existentialism. Dark but riveting.

There is no Kafka like Kafka and Kafka is his prophet

The uncanny originality of these most remarkable stories and parables by arguably the most precise delineator of the human mind in all its fear , anxiety and beauty will spellbind the reader, and provide Literature at the very highest level. One of the great books which as Camus said of Kafka demands rereading and rereading.