The Glass Bead Game

Hermann Hesse was born in Calw, Wurttemburg in 1877. In 1919, as a protest against German militarism in the First World War, Hesse moved to Switzerland where he lived in self-imposed exile until his death at the age of eighty-five in 1962. His major works include Steppenwolf, Siddharta and Narcissus and Goldmund. Hesse worked on his magnum opus, The Glass Bead Game, for twelve years. This novel was specifically cited when he was awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1946. Hesse died in 1962.

In the remote Kingdom of Castalia, the scholars of the Twenty Third century play the Glass Bead Game. The elaborately coded game is a fusion of all human knowledge - of maths, music, philosophy, science, and art. Intrigued as a school boy, Joseph Knecht becomes consumed with mastering the game as an adult. As Knecht fulfils his life-long quest he must contend with unexpected dilemmas and the longing for a life beyond the ivory tower. 'One of the truly important books of the century, in any language' The Times In the remote Kingdom of Castalia, the scholars of the Twenty Third century play the Glass Bead Game. The elaborately coded game is a fusion of all human knowledge - of maths, music, philosophy, science, and art. Intrigued as a school boy, Joseph Knecht becomes consumed with mastering the game as an adult. As Knecht fulfils his life-long quest he must contend with unexpected dilemmas and the longing for a life beyond the ivory tower. 'Sublime' Thomas Mann SEE ALSO: THE TIN DRUM BY GUNTER GRASS.