I enjoyed this book for all the complications which were epitomized magnificantly by the Author, Colm Toibin.
The novel is based on the best selling, Nobel Prize winning Author, Thomas Mann.
The book spans the first world war, the rise of Hitler, World War II, the Cold War and his life in exile.
In this portrayal, he was a man with obsessions, who cultivated his life based on a need 'to know' and then explores his feelings through writing.
His obsessions, including infatuations with a cultured Jewish family, the socail mores of the bourgeoisie German family, homsexuality, religion and his staunch objection to Hitler and the Nazi regime.
The Author was revered for his insightful commentary but ultimately lived in exile. He flees Germany to Switzerland, France and America.
I am an admirer of all of Mr. Toibin's books and look forward to reading each and every one.
Thank you NetGalley and Scribner for the opportunity to read and review this book.
jb
https://seniorbooklounge.blogspot.com/

The Magician is a fictionalization account of Thomas Mann, a Nobel Prize winning author who I was not familiar with when I started this book. Originally I found it slow moving but when I realized this was Colim Toibin’s factionalized story of a real writer, it took on a different feel for me.

Mann led an interesting life through 2 World Wars and the Cold War. Toibin was thorough in his research of Mann’s fascinations with beautiful men, his ever caring loving relationship with his wife Katia and his six children and the processes that helped Mann accomplish all the books he wrote. Toibin’s writing is detailed and lengthy at times but provides the reader with a full view of the characters and the world in which they are living.

Thank you to NetGalley for this ARC.

My review is a 3.5

The author is a favorite of mine each of his books is beautifully written with interesting characters.Thomas Mann with all his faults is brought to life a cold distant man.I was drawn in from the first pages the description of his mother’s interaction with the family. Will be recommending.#netgalley #scribner.#

Colm Toibin is a literary treasure. From his pure fiction like “Brooklyn” to his biofiction such as “The Master” to his plays, essays, journals, critical reviews and teaching, he has made an outsize impact on the world of literature for the past 40+ years. He is an advocate for the voiceless, unafraid, and unabashed. He has long been an outspoken advocate for LGBTQ+ rights and equality.

My first encounter with Toibin was reading “Homage to Barcelona”. He captures the essence of a city that is, and always has been, fascinating in every way. I followed that by reading his first novel, “The South”. I was hooked and have followed Toibin’s work ever since .

My favorite has been “The Master” (2005), I was not a big fan of biofiction previously. Toibin showed me how rewarding elegant literary treatments of larger-than-life historical titans can be.

When I heard that Tobin’s next effort was going to be another biofictional epic, this time centered on one of my all-time favorite authors - 1929 Nobel Prize winner, Thomas Mann, I was “all-in”. While I have read all but one of Mann’s novels, as well as several biographical treatments of Mann and his family, “The Magician” took my knowledge and understanding to a whole other level.

Toibin’s approach is not centered on recording a moment-by-moment accounting of Mann’s life. He certainly focuses chronologically on critical events and experiences that served as the foundation and inspiration for Mann’s most famous works. There is a great deal of new (likely true or at least fully plausible) detail surrounding his remarkable (and not fully functional) family.

I most appreciated the deeper treatment of seminal themes that Mann experienced throughout his life: 1) fascism vs. communism that first tore apart Germany, then Europe and finally the world, 2) the tension between unbridled mercantilism/capitalism vs. arts, aesthetics and humanism, 3) the conflict between the way people present themselves to family, friends and society vs. the way they really are and want to be. This third area centered in large part on Mann’s lifelong struggle with sexual identity.

Toibin is at his best while sharing insight into the stresses Mann felt as an increasingly influential public figure on both sides of the Atlantic. He was pressured by many at all levels - family, friends, influencers, world leaders - to engage or not, keep secrets, and/or speak-out. He was initially careful, hesitant, reluctant, and even afraid, later understanding how vital just his voice was to so many.

I learned so much in every way; Mann’s life choices were far more subtle, nuanced, traumatic, and complex than I had earlier understood. Colm Toibin is an artist to forever cherish.

Thanks to Scribner for the physical galley for review. Much appreciated..

The Magician is a fictional biography of Thomas Mann, a writer. The book, based on the real-life Nobel Prize-winning writer, explores his familial relationships, his secret desires, and his country in the midst of war. Thomas is conflicted in many ways: primarily between his conservative upbringing and his secret desires, his love of Germany and a call for him to speak out against Hitler’s atrocities, and his relationship with his family. The book spans many years including both world wars and the Cold War.

This novel is impeccably researched and offers unique insight into both the public and private life of Thomas Mann. It is also the story of moral fortitude, tested by both internal desires and the political landscape. I found the most interesting parts of this novel were the historical elements. The story is somewhat slow to unfold and I found that the pace dragged a bit. I was unaware of Thomas Mann prior to reading this book and I believe it would have been more interesting and enjoyable had I known about him and his accomplishments. As it was, I didn’t find him or his family especially interesting. However, I appreciated the research that went into this story and enjoyed the historical context. I loved Brooklyn but I think this novel falls short.

The Magician by Colm Toibin imagines the life of Pulitzer Prize-winning author Thomas Mann. This multi-generational family drama is set against the tumultuous changes experienced by the German people in the 20th c. and I found that aspect of the book as interesting as Mann’s personal life.

Mann appears stolid and conventional, but he struggles with illicit desires. His wife accepts him but also curtails social interactions to protect him from temptation. He cannibalizes his life for his books, neglecting his biological children to birth his stories. He wrote about his family and his wife’s time in a sanitarium. People recognized a portrait of his grandson in a scene.

The oldest children come to age between the wars, living Bohemian and sexually adventurous lives. One daughter marries W. H. Auden, a known homosexual, while another chooses a much older man. The children’s lives are more colorful than their father’s; they are politically active during the rise of the Nazis, while their father will not say anything that would impact the sales of his books or his publisher.

He did not think for a moment that the Nazis would ever take power.
from The Magician by Colm Toibin

The rise of the Nazis took Mann by surprise. His wife was from a secular Jewish family. The Manns had to flee their home, given refuge first at Princeton University before they settled in California.

Mann’s speeches extolled freedom and democracy. He was under governmental pressure not to challenge the American stance of neutrality. His family and friends took sides in the political divisions, giving a full picture of German politics.

Mann believed that the seeds of Germany’s destruction lay in its own culture; even the romantic music of Germany ‘had helped to nourish a raw mindlessness that had now become brutality.” “Don’t you see what is happening,” one of the Mann children’s friends warned before he kills himself.

Even after the defeat of Hitler, Mann and his wife cannot accept how their fellow countrymen allowed and abetted the rise of fascism.

It is chilling to recognize how easily people of intelligence and education can underestimate military hate groups and what they consider ‘crackpot’ wannabe dictators. What happened in the 1930s was not an anomaly. Democracies die. Books are burned. Hate finds a victim.

I love Toibin’s Brooklyn and Nora Webster and trusted his pen.The Magician is an immense undertaking and I was impressed by it. And yet, I had great difficulty reviewing the book. It took me days before I realized why–I just did not like Thomas Mann. I understood him, perhaps, but I did not like him. I was uncomfortable with his fixation on the beauty of young boys. I was disappointed that he did not speak out against the Nazis as did his brother and children. He was unable to adapt to necessary changes. He was self-focused. And when I read Death in Venice, which is a remarkable work, my discomfort was multiplied.

I received a free egalley from the publisher through NetGalley. My review is fair and unbiased.

Early in the book Mann's son, Klaus, has a nightmare. His father calms him. and the next morning Klaus tells his family that his father has magic powers and the right words to banish a ghost. Toibin has found the right words to illuminate the life of Thomas Mann. The magic of this fictional biography lies in the way the author brings to life a man who outwardly appeared aloof and bookish but whose family and inner life are the total opposite.
Mann, born into a stolid German family , became a national celebrity as a result of his literary works. He won the Nobel Prize in 1929. His opinions on German politics were sought and his attempts to keep his opinions private caused him to lose many friendships and the respect of his children. Toibin looks beyond the writer and reveals the depth of Mann as a husband, father and homosexual. The story is honestly and respectfully told in language and plot that echo the movements of music that Mann so loved.

The Magician review
Thomas Mann was born in a small Bavarian town but eventually moved to Munich where he met the wealthy family of his future wife, Katia. Her family were non practicing Jews and some had even become Christians. Thomas realized that he had homosexual tendencies but kept this hidden from his wife and family.
His first important book, Buddenbrooks, was a fictionalized story about his family and their social class. He won the Nobel Prize for Literature for the book in 1929. However he began to speak out about the rise of Hitler and decided to move his family to Switzerland before the beginning of WWII. Years later he emigrated to the United States where he lectured at Princeton and also lectured on the dangers of the Nazis.
Eventually here were 6 Mann children and 3 of them became writers. Two of his children, Klaus and Erica, were radicals whose ideas were in opposition to Mann’s more moderate politics.
Thomas and Katia spent many years in California but later retired to Switzerland where he died.
The author states that the book was “inspired” by the writings of the Mann family. He also cited several biographies of Mann as well as his family members. Finally he listed books about other prominent German emigres to the US.
The book was well written with several references to Mann’s sexuality and his wife’s acceptance of it. It shows how Hitler rose to power in the years before WW II as well as efforts of prominent Americans to get the US to enter the war. Finally there are many references to classical music and operas that were enjoyed by wealthy Germans.
I received this ARC from the publisher and Net Galley in exchange for an honest review.

Colm Toibin writes from a perspective all his own. One of my favorite books, that has stayed with me for years was Brooklyn. This is a slow moving story about Thomas Mann, but I do think it is a good one. I think maybe there could be less content but I don't think that is how Toibin does things. Didn't resonate with me as much as Brooklyn, but it is a good story.

Thank you NetGalley and the Publisher for this ARC!

DNF at 42%. I've learned this is a fictionalized account of the real novelist Thomas Mann, so I understand that it was probably important to Toibin to include a realistic view of that. And I'm sure this book will work for some people. But yikes, I have no interest in reading about a man's sexual attraction to his underage son, real or fictionalized, and it's not something I would be comfortable hand-selling in my store.

I think much of the point of this novel is that Thomas Mann was distant and emotionally unavailable. That said, I just really want to connect with characters and I found this novel difficult to engage with.

Really enjoyed this book! It was the first one for me to read by this author and I can't wait to read more! The characters stick with you long after the book is over.

“He had made the great compromise. As he sat, perfectly washed and shaved, in his grand house, in his suit and tie, his family all around, his books arranged on the shelves in his study with the same respect for order as his thoughts and his response to life, he could have been a businessman.”

Cóibín’s incredibly detailed fictional biography of Thomas Mann juxtaposes Mann’s rich inner thought-life with his public persona and family life. Mann truly lives at a remove; he exists as an observer, not a participant, which may have enabled him to write exquisitely but also made him difficult to live with. The contrast between Mann’s never-expressed emotions and yearning fantasies with his reserved, at times estranged, family relationships is wrenching. Cóibín deftly portrays all aspects of Mann’s personality with kindness and a willingness to take him as he is without judgment.

Highly recommended.
5 stars

Thank you to the publisher for the opportunity to review the ARC via Netgalley.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for an e ARC of this book. Historical fiction detailing the life of Thomas Mann along with the world events between wars..
Thomas Mann was a favorite of mine in the '60s and I loved reading this biography.
The author is new to me. Well researched, excellently written. A bit long but a good read.

I knew little of Thomas Mann before reading this book. It is well-researched and leisurely paced following Thomas Mann's life through two world wars. I believe many will enjoy this account of Mann's life but for me, I just could not get into it emotionally (and maybe I'm not supposed to) It just lacked warmth to me.

This is the first book I have read by Colm Toibin. With his fabulous reputation as a writer, I expected to be transported to another time and place. The fictionalized account of author Thomas Mann is an ambitious project, however I found the pacing plodding. I will not be finishing this book.

A masterpiece. Too many quotes, too many thoughts to share,... need time to find the words that can do justice to this magnificent fictionalized biography and its amazing writer. Will write the review later, but for now, no doubt, this is a book of the year!

Update, here's my review:

Stylistically flawless and impeccably paced, this fictional biography of Thomas Mann is neither judgmental nor hagiographic, but admirably immersive into its subject, showing many years of extensive research and written with penetrating insights into complicated relations between Mann’s inner mind, as reflected in his fiction, essays, and diaries, and his outward public and family life. Toíbín’s story-telling is multi-layered and the novel also reads as a fascinating family saga, a historical tour de force through the political turmoils from World War I through the rise of fascism to the Cold War, all at once with penetrating literary insights into Mann’s major novels and stories (especially, Buddenbrooks, The Blood of the Walsungs [Wälsungenblut], Death in Venice, The Magic Mountain, Doctor Faustus, Felix Krull).

At one level, it’s a story of a man who found himself at the political crossroads in the most dramatic period of modern history, whose personality was too cautious to be as outspoken as his brother Heinrich or son Klaus, but who nonetheless had the moral fortitude to stand up to the darkness of fascism in his own way, through his rescue arrangements for all of his children and a score of friends, his refusals to be silenced, his difficult decision to part from his beloved Germany of Goethe the moment his naive hopes that Hitler would never seize power shattered, and above all in his writings, whether through allegories in his fiction or direct pleas to reason, freedom, and (social) democracy in his later speeches.

The book narrates the turbulent first half of the 20th century, from the upheavals in Germany and Europe, World War II to the McCarthyist witch-hunt in the early years of the Cold War, as mirrored in the destinies of the Mann family, their constant search for new citizenships and a sense of home as émigrés constantly on the move from Switzerland to France, back to Switzerland, then to America and again back to Switzerland (“he had been brutally hounded out of Germany and politely ushered out of America”).

It is also a family saga, first of the Manns in Lübeck with four siblings, two of whom eventually committed suicide (both sisters), one brother (Viktor) later comfortably living under Nazism while the other (Heinrich) hounded by the same regime but also in the perpetual sibling rivalry with Thomas, both over their literary merits and political beliefs …Thomas accused as too timid by Heinrich, Thomas in turn seeing Heinrich as too foolish in his radical leftist leanings. Then there is the family life with the in-laws Pringsheims, his wife Katia’s wealthy and cultivated family in Munich, their shared love of Wagner and Mahler (a family friend), the world of literature, arts, music, cafés and opera in Munich at the times of the nascent democracy but also chaos and inflation in the 1920s.

The heart of the family saga, however, is Thomas Mann’s life with his wife Katia and their six children, each of whom could be a subject of a separate novel, their escapades, follies, eccentricities, marriages, homosexual lovers, losses (Klaus committed suicide). None of them close to their father, under whose shadow as a literary giant their lives were defined as “lesser achievements”. Their father’s aloofness and retreat into the world of writing alienated them to never have a sense of gratitude for his financial support throughout their lives and his desperate search for their rescue from an almost certain death had they stayed in Germany. Leaving it to practical and protective Katia to discipline their children, he tried to endear them with humor and by playing tricks, hence their nickname for him ‘Magician’ remained for the rest of their lives. Toíbín masterfully gives voice to Katia, whose gentle yet formidable presence is felt throughout the novel. A mother who took care of their children’s upbringing while guarding her husband from intruders, she was practical, fearless, cosmopolitan, cultivated, humane, in some ways eccentric while in others traditional, her husband’s soulmate.

Besides entering the complicated world of the Mann family, we also retreat with him into his study, his inner life into which he escapes from the contradictions around him and inside him. It’s all reflected in his novels and stories and, if I were to highlight only one of many fascinating layers in this novel, it would be the magical skill with which Toíbín submerges himself into Mann’s creative writing in which Mann often sublimates his complicated relations with his children, extended family, other German émigrés, his own sexuality (his homoerotic infatuations), and disillusionment with his beloved Germany.

Toward the end of the novel, Toíbín beautifully interpolates an episode from Bach’s famous visit to Buxtehude in Lübeck with Mann’s nostalgic reminiscences of his childhood, mother, siblings, the demolished Buddenbrooks house, the vanished world of yesterday… I realized how much Toíbín succeeded to emotionally involve his reader with all of their lives that when I re-read the last pages, this time wanting to share them aloud with my SO, I was surprised that I had difficulty holding back my tears (don’t want to sound melodramatic, but that’s true).

My thanks to Scribner for an ARC via NetGalley.

Toibin is a favorite author so I was excited to hear about this new novel on the life of Thomas Mann. Mann was a writer caught between many conflicting worlds and Toibin portrays these with sensitivity and insight. As the preeminent German author of his time, Mann was torn between the ideals through which he viewed the German people (holding onto the ideals of Goethe and other writers and composers) and the barbaric behavior of the Nazi party and the rise of Hitler. Mann's family life was very complex and his relationships with his wife, siblings and his children had many conflicts and tragedies, but despite the intense differences, the family loved and respected on another. Mann is portrayed as very conflicted about his role and identity in society and on the world stage as he is called upon to speak out against Germany, for while he hates Hitler, he still loves his country.
At one point, Toibin suggests that Mann's prose was almost poetry and I would say that of Toibin's prose as well. His writing is beautiful and emotional.
Highly recommended for those interested in the life of Mann or just wanting to read more of a writer's process. The descriptive passages on the emigration of Mann and his family and the hardships they and others endured add to the knowledge of the time immediately preceding the war when many emigres were truly peoples without a country.

As a longtime fan of historical fiction, I have read all of Toibin’s books and he remains one of my all time favorite authors. This new book does not disappoint. As in past works, I enjoyed learning about an individual historical figure at the hands of this author. In this particular case, I had no previous knowledge of Thomas Mann and can only imagine how much fuller my reading experience would have been had I read Mann or even been aware of his life. I probably enjoyed THE MASTER and THE TESTAMENT OF MARY more for this reason. This book covers many years of history but all from the intimate perspective of one man and his family. I especially appreciated the ongoing description of the brother relationship and the family life at that time. I definitely felt like I got the insider’s scope on the life and times of this great Nobel Prize winner and could empathize with his struggles as a writer, a gay man married to a woman, and a caring, if befuddled, father doing the best he could for his many offspring. I felt educated but not as entertained as I was by BROOKLYN. I was glad to have finished but it did take a while! - Mary

Historical fiction from a great author. Thank you for the Advanced readers copy and allowing a reader to preview a possible great seller