‘The stories are dreamlike, allegorical, ghoulishly detached, exquisitely comic, numinous, & prophetic’ —New York TimesNew translations of the essential stories of one of the twentieth century’s greatest & most influential writersNo one has captured the modern experience, its wild dreams, strange joys, its neuroses & boredom, better thanFranz Kafka. His vision, with its absurdity & twisted humour, has lost none of its force or relevance today. This essential collection, translated & selected byAlexander Starritt, casts fresh light on Kafka’s genius.Alongside brutal depictions of violence & justice are jokes & deceptively slight, mysterious fables. These unforgettable pieces reflect the brilliance at the core ofFranz Kafka, arguably most fully expressed within hisshort stories. Together they showcase a writer of unmatched imaginative depth, capable of expressing the most profound reality with a wry smile.Part of thePushkin Press Classicsseries: timeless storytelling by icons of literature, hand-picked from around the globeTranslated byAlexander Starritt°°°Franz Kafka (1883-1924)was born to Jewish parents in Prague & wrote in German. He published only a few story collections & individual stories in literary magazines during his lifetime. The rest of his work was published posthumously. He is now considered one of the most influential authors of the twentieth century.°°°“The greatest German writer of our time. Such poets as Rilke or such novelists as Thomas Mann are dwarfs or plastic saints in comparison with him” —Vladimir Nabokov“A genius.” —Guardian“[Kafka] spoke for millions in their new unease; a century after his birth, he seems the last holy writer, & the supreme fabulist of modern man’s cosmic predicament.” —John Updike