A fascinating look at Thomas Mann's life. I found it absorbing and raced through the second half of the book. What I loved most was his family and how they interacted with each other and the world.

Rich and complex immersion into Bavaria and Germany before and during WWII. Following a large and diverse family through the turmoil, changes, and horrors - and bravery most unexpected. A ground floor view.

I received an e-ARC of this book thanks to #NetGalley.

I had very much looked forward to this book, but at the end of the day, can't say I enjoyed reading it very much. I never found myself very much engaged by any of the characters, except in the sense of wanting to know more about their history and contributions.

My Book Club read this book and we all agreed on several points: 1., The majority of the book is a slow read. It's hard to stick with it at times. 2. The main character is not very appealing - we understood the implications of living one life and desiring another, but felt like he spent a lot of time being self-serving. 3. It's important to know that this is the semi biographical book about Thomas Mann (famous German writer) and the time period he lived in was very much against anyone that didn't follow the societal norms. Giving in to his desires would have meant ruin and death. 4. Even though his marriage and children are really a cover up of his true desires, he does love his wife and children. 5. Given the time period and angst all over Germany, it's amazing what Mann's kids get away with and feel proud of. All in all, this was a challenging book to read, but one that made us all think carefully about moral choices and the time period we live in.

This is a novelized biography of Thomas Mann. I wasn’t really aware of who this was, so I didn’t feel like I had adequate background knowledge going into this one. This is well- written and obviously very well researched. I thought at times it was a bit too long.

Was not able to access the book. Switched from a Barnes and Noble tablet to a Kindle. When downloading, would not go to my Kindle.

For me, this is one of those books that I honestly don’t know how I feel about it. I didn’t hate it but I wasn’t shouting about it. There was so much going on in this book, a little too much for me. That being said, I would definitely give this writer’s next novel a read.

I voluntarily reviewed a copy of this book provided by NetGalley.

Anything by this author is always worth reading and this is an interesting premise well developed

I'm embarrassed to admit that I went into The Magician not even realizing that it was about a real person. In some ways, that made it more interesting--I was looking up books and people as I went because I wanted to know more, and I might actually pick up one of Thomas Mann's books after this. But honestly, I would recommend the book more for people who are already fans of Mann's work. This is more a fictionalized biography than a novel in my opinion (imagining thoughts and conversations but ultimately a fairly dry, factual account of his life), and I just didn't care enough about him for that...and the book didn't pack enough of an emotional punch to make me care. I'm still a fan of Toibin's writing, but this book was just okay for me.

This was very dense, I would have liked it more if the Lincoln highway wasn't released around the same time and I could have been more appreciative of this.

I'm afraid to say I didn't get on with this book at all; I guess I just don't understand Tóibín's intentions of presenting this as a novel rather than a biography when it is so bogged down with biographical detail, at expense of the narrative.

An extraordinary book about the life of Thomas Mann. From what I can tell while reading, it's well researched and I learned a lot about a person and subject I was not familiar with. I found some parts difficult to get through while I flew through others, but I also feel like that is just how it is with some books that deal with so many historical facts. A really good book!

I wanted to love this book but the pacing was too slow for me. I was getting distracted quickly and it's not a quick book so it took me way longer than I hoped to get through.

I love this author so requested the title without any idea of the content. This is a fictionalized biography of Thomas Mann. There is nothing wrong with the writing, but I have no interest in Mann and this book did not make me regret that feeling. Not for me.

The Magician is a fictionalized chronicle of the life of Thomas Mann. For the most part, Tóibín turns history into fascinating fiction, but I did find myself wishing that he had committed more to the fictionalized aspect of the novel and given us more of Mann's inner life. As interesting as Mann's biography is, I think the joy of fiction is the ability to imagine what people are thinking and feeling and why that might be. Otherwise, even a beautiful fictional work like this one feels slippery and indistinct. Of course, Tóibín's prose is so gorgeous that it still makes the reading worthwhile and enjoyable.

I loved this book. I never knew that Thomas Mann could be so fascinating. I enjoyed it so much I sought out his previous novel in a similar vein about William James. So very good!

Thank you to NetGalley and Scribner for this literary biography as novel. The Magician is an engrossing, if slightly overlong, recounting of the life of Thomas Mann. Toibin tackles the lifelong hesitancy of Mann to address his sexuality, as well as his initial reluctance to speak out on the National Socialist movement in Germany.

I have read other titles by Colm Toibin and have to acknowledge that I enjoyed them more than I did this particular book. This was so difficult to read from the start, the pace and the characters were so hard to get into a groove with. It was laborious, and it's hard to motivate through a slower paced, historically set story when the characters and hard to like and relate to. Though, I believe that is part of the evolution of this story and family, but to be honest, it was not an enjoyable read. I put it down more than once and read other books in between, which is not something I usually do, but I suspect the current state of the world made some of the heavy aspects of this harder to carry and read (for me).. So ultimately it was not as enjoyable as other books by the Author, for me. It is an interesting look into the life and this particular familial history, that I might not otherwise have been introduced to. I'm grateful for the opportunity to have been offered the reading of this in advance of publication, and I'm embarrassed it's taken me so long to have read it. I will still read more from this Author, and look forward to more.

Compelling fictionalized account of the life of Thomas Mann, which provides an intriguing account of German intellectual life before World War II and the vibrant, suffering diaspora of German intellectuals in exile after the war. The Mann family was eccentric and troubled and by the end of the book it was difficult to keep reading about their suffering and dysfunction. So while I enjoyed reading the book, and admired the movement through time and the juggling of so many characters, I didn't end up loving it.

Cold Toibin is a wonderful storyteller. He does a great job bringing Thomas Mann to life. Both the political difficulties of the day and the personal dilemmas in Mann’s life are explored by Toibin. A wonderful author that I will continue to follow.