2004

BD -- Literature and Literary Studies

Autorinnen-Lexikon [Encyclopedia of Women Writers]. Ed. Ute Hechtfischer. Frankfurt am Main: Suhrkamp, 2002. vi, 617 p. ill. 21 cm. (Suhrkamp-Taschenbuch, 3418). ISBN 3-518-39918-7: EUR 18 [04-1-119]

Originally published as Metzler-Autorinnen-Lexikon (see RREA 9:242), this volume covers about 400 authors, supposedly chosen from a broad scope reaching across time and geography. The criteria for inclusion are not explained, however, and the authors seem to have been chosen arbitrarily. The entries are not always up-to-date. Each is generally one to one-and-a-half pages long, usually includes a photo, and is written simply and clearly. The entries address the life and writings of each author, often including excerpts from diaries, autobiographies, letters, and interviews; quotations are translated into German and not given a bibliographical citation. It would be hard to know how accurate the individual entries are. A minimal bibliography is provided at the end of each entry. This volume is not indispensable. [gr/cmd]

Der Brockhaus, Literatur: Schriftsteller, Werke, Epochen, Sachbegriffe [Brockhaus Encyclopedia of Literature: Authors, Works, Periods, Concepts]. Ed. Eva Beate Bode. 2d fully rev. ed. Mannheim; Leipzig: Brockhaus, 2003. 959 p. ill. 25 cm. (Brockhaus-Sachlexika). ISBN 3- 7653-0351-8: EUR 49.95 [04-01-121]

Although in many cases the reader finds appropriate and clearly written information on the desired topic, one repeatedly encounters the limits of this work. Often major points are simply left out or treated too briefly. The divisions within articles are highly inconsistent; e.g., some author articles have sections for biography and works, others do not. Even worse than the careless divisions within articles is the unsatisfactory system of “see” references. In articles that mention an author who has been given a separate entry in the encyclopedia, there is generally no reference to that article. References to literary concepts are sparse and inconsistent.

Article texts are supplemented by various text blocks set off from the main text by both color and typography. Approximately 150 of these blocks are used to showcase key works of world literature, some of which accompany the article about the author, while other blocks appear with an article on a genre or concept that the work exemplifies (such as Eco’s The Name of the Rose for intertextuality), again without a reference to the main article on that work’s author. Still other text blocks offer seemingly tangential information, or simply reword and reproduce information found in the accompanying article. Many of the text blocks of this type offer information that goes well beyond the scope of the article, yet these are not captured in the table of contents for the work, violating the core principle of a reference work, i.e., that one can find information directly without having to scan for it. The text blocks are also used to provide three or four bullet points of key information on an author. While the idea has some merit and is generally well applied here, in many instances the bullets state seemingly trivial points while neglecting to mention salient information about the writer.

The lexicon includes over 1,000 illustrations, but in many cases the connection between the illustration and the article it accompanies seems remote at best, while in others the image simply misses the point or, worse, contradicts the text. Many of the captions repeat information found in the text or are simply verbose.

There are also 24 two-paged “special articles” on “interesting phenomena and concepts” in literature. The selections made seem arbitrary and tend toward overused contemporary jargon such as interculturality and new media. Unlike the “special articles,” which can at least be found via an overview, “period tables” scattered throughout the work lack an overview and entries in the table of contents. These one-page tables consist of a short text followed by an illustration and a list of authors and concepts found in the encyclopedia. Many essential writers and concepts are missing from these tables; the lack of a reference to the main article on the period is another weakness.

Academic libraries can do without this encyclopedia in their reference collections. Although the colorful text and the text blocks add to the visual appeal, given its deficits in the areas of structure and coordination, it cannot really be recommended for public libraries either. On the other hand, it is fun to flip through, and one can pick up useful tidbits and ideas. [pst/dsa]

Lexikon der Weltliteratur: biographisch-bibliographisches Handwörterbuch nach Autoren und anonymen Werken [Dictionary of World Literature: Biobibliographical Dictionary of Authors and Anonymous Works]. Ed. Gero von Wilpert. 4th fully rev. ed. Stuttgart: Kröner, 2004. 22 cm. [04-2-442]

Vol. 1. Deutsche Autoren A-Z [German Authors, A-Z]. xiii, 698 p. ISBN 3-520-83704-8: EUR 80

Vol. 2. Fremdsprachige Autoren [Authors Writing in Languages Other than German]. 2 pts. xxi, 1,999 p. ISBN 3-520-83804-4: EUR 198

In 2004, on the occasion of its 100th anniversary (see RREA 10:50), the publishing house of Alfred Kröner issued a fourth, fully revised edition of what is probably its most widely used and profitable reference work, the Lexikon der Weltliteratur, often referred to simply as “Wilpert.” The work’s first edition appeared more than 40 years ago, in 1956. The third edition appeared in hardcover in 1988 and in paperback in 1997 and contained an additional volume devoted to short descriptions of major works of world literature, listed by title. The volume on works has been omitted from this fourth edition, but the loss is not a great one, for Wilpert’s usefulness always lay in its entries for individual authors.

Because of its increased size, the fourth edition has been issued in three separately available volumes. The work is now divided into one section on German authors and a second section on non-German authors. The section on German authors, which now can be purchased on its own, thus supersedes Wilpert’s Deutsches Dichterlexikon [Dictionary of German Authors], for which he had extracted entries on German authors from the more comprehensive Lexikon der Weltliteratur.

According to the publisher’s brochure, the fourth edition contains circa 12,000 entries, of which 2,350 are new. Since the third edition already contained some 11,000 entries, it appears that some of those 11,000 entries have been dropped to make way for new entries. A list of contributors is included, but the entries themselves are unsigned.

The well-designed structure of the previous editions has been retained; each entry consists first of a biographical note followed by a general evaluation of the character of the author’s work and of his or her place in literary history, and then a bibliography, which lists both primary and secondary literature. The list of secondary literature is limited to monographs; i.e., it excludes articles in periodicals, although it does include bibliographies published as monographs.

This new edition of Wilpert maintains its place in the front ranks of literary reference works. Like its predecessors, it concentrates on literary authors and excludes writers of historical, philosophical, and scholarly works, which are covered by other specialized reference works. The new three-volume format is not as handy as the single volume of the preceding editions. A cd-rom update from the 2000 edition would now be a desideratum, especially if it included those entries from earlier editions that have been omitted from the current print version. [sh/crc]

Euroconte: une base bibliographique pour aborder la littérature orale européenne [Euroconte: A Bibliographic Introductory Tool to European Oral Tradition]. Brignoles: Fédération dé partementale des villes jumelées et des communes européennes du Var, 2001. 160 p. ill. 30 cm. ISBN (invalid) 2-951-6571: EUR 12.19

An RREA Original Review by Dominique Coulombe (Brown University)

The inspiration behind this bibliography came from a European cooperative project launched in 1996, in which selected public libraries in France, Finland, Denmark and Greece participated. The project, placed under the aegis of the Centre Méditerranéen de la Littérature Orale (CMLO) and supported by the European Union program Ariane, had two goals. The first phase of the project aimed at promoting the reading of European folk tales among young people. The goal of the second phase was to organize and offer group activities and workshops around folk tales that would increase the mutual understanding of cultures and cultural identity of, and among, various European countries. The collection of texts and documents collected and shared during this project formed the basis for the bibliography Euroconte.

The purpose of this bibliography is to serve as a guide for readers of primary works, as well as a tool for educators and researchers who are interested in the analysis and context provided by secondary works. Although the title suggests a wider scope, the bibliography is limited to eight European countries: Germany, Belgium, Denmark, Spain, Finland, France, Greece, Italy, Portugal, and Romania. The first three sections of the bibliography cover general and contextual works about folk tales, some linguistic definitions of types of European oral tradition, and general works on subjects gleaned from the primary works described in the main part of the volume. This main part is organized by country, with collections of folk tales and general works followed by works on specific subjects, such as bears or dragons. The majority of the works cited are in the French language, with a number of titles in translation from other Western European languages. Some of the citations are annotated, but the annotations vary in length and in extent of coverage. A comparison with Contemporary Legend: A Folklore Bibliography by Gillian Bennett and Paul Smith indicates that titles by authoritative scholars in the field have been included, such as those by social anthropologist Sir James George Frazer or by Ralph S. Boggs, a folklorist of international reputation. Other well-known scholars and writers, such as Bernadette Bricout, a professor of oral literature at the University Paris VII, or Henri Gougaud, a contemporary French writer of poetry and tales, are included, but it is not clear what criteria were used for selecting the works cited, since some works on folk tales published by these authors have been excluded.

Simple but attractive graphic motifs illustrate the various sections of the work. There is an index of authors. A thematic index and an index organized by country consist of references to page numbers, with no author or title information; it is unfortunate that Denmark is omitted from the index by country. Numbering the entries would have facilitated the consultation of the bibliography, but only the pages are numbered. The link to an online version of the author index cited in the bibliography itself, http://perso.wanadoo.fr/vareneurope/vareneurope/index.htm, led to a site about European cooperative projects initiated in the département of Var in France; however, the link to the publications section on that site is inactive. Following an e-mail inquiry, Marc Aubaret, Director of the CMLO and author of the preface to this volume, indicated that the bibliography available on the site http://www.euroconte.org/ represents only the holdings of the Centre Méditerranéen de la Littérature Orale, and does not include the works listed in the print publication Euroconte, as one would expect. The CMLO’s online bibliography—which is worth exploring in its own right—is free while under construction, but will be accessible only to subscribers upon completion.

In spite of its unevenness and some shortcomings, Euroconte offers an interesting compilation of introductory works to the study of oral tradition. The primary works and folk tale collections have been carefully selected and offer a good resource, especially for readers of French. However, the appeal of this publication to a scholarly audience is limited, due to the lack of rigor and consistency in the selection of the resources as well as in the editing of the publication. Educators and scholars who wish to conduct advanced research will want to consult bibliographies that are wider in scope and offer more depth in coverage such as Steinfirst’s Folklore and Folklife: a Guide to English-Language Reference Sources (1992), or specialized works such as Falassi’s Italian Folklore: an Annotated Bibliography (1985).

Eine Literaturgeschichte Mitteleuropas [A Literary History of Central Europe]. Zoran Konstantinovic and Fridrun Rinner. Innsbruck [et al.]: Studien-Verlag, 2003. 510 p. 23 cm. (Comparanda, 3). ISBN 3-7065-1555-5: EUR 52 [04-2-443]

The authors of this study, both literary historians, provide a close look at the controversial, ever-changing concept of “Mitteleuropa,” which basically includes the major languages of the former Austro-Hungarian Empire. This region is an “open system” that over the centuries has nevertheless demonstrated a cultural and intellectual cohesion—this in spite of enormous ethnic, political, and linguistic differences. The literary history of this region is traced from its origins in Renaissance Italy through the convulsions of 1989 and returns repeatedly to the significance of Vienna in bringing together the western and eastern parts of Europe’s center. The book includes brief bio-bibliographic sketches of major literary figures. There are no footnotes. The bibliography is divided into sections that correspond to the book’s chapters. [gr/sl]

Internationales Germanistenlexikon 1800-1950: eine Veröffentlichung der Arbeitsstelle für die Erforschung der Geschichte der Germanistik im Deutschen Literaturarchiv Marbach [International Dictionary of Germanists, 1800-1950: A Publication of the Taskforce on Researching the History of German Studies, Located at the German Literary Archive in Marbach]. Ed. Christoph König for the Arbeitsstelle für die Erforschung der Geschichte der Germanistik im Deutschen Literaturarchiv Marbach. 3 vols. Berlin [et al.]: W. de Gruyter, 2003. lxxxv, 2,200 p. 25 cm. ISBN 3-11-015485-4 (print only): EUR 428; ISBN 3-11-017587-8 (cd-rom only): EUR 428; ISBN 3-11-017588-6 (print + cd-rom): EUR 578 [04-1-124]

This encyclopedia contains some 200 short biographies with brief annotations to literary works and criticism. The articles vary greatly and range from a rudimentary collection of facts to multi-page biographies with discussions of the literary oeuvre. Not all the articles are signed. The first major drawback is the selection of the writers; some women are included who either never left Germany or started writing only well after 1945. Another problem is the lack of cross-references for variant name spellings, name changes, and pseudonyms—surely an important factor in the study of exile literature. Furthermore, a number of important recent reference works were apparently not utilized, as they are not listed in “Works Consulted.” This is a third edition by a third publisher (for the 1995 edition see RREA 2:145). It is regrettable that earlier criticisms were not heeded. This important subject deserves a thoroughly new treatment. [ab/hsb]

Lexikon der deutschsprachigen Gegenwartsliteratur seit 1945 [Dictionary of Contemporary German-Language Literature since 1945]. Ed. Thomas Kraft. Completely rev. and updated new ed. 2 vols. München: Nymphenburger, 2003. 1,399 p. 25 cm. ISBN 3-485-00989-X: EUR 148 [04-1-127]

This well-known work, originally conceptualized by Hermann Kunisch and subsequently re-worked by Dietz-Rüdiger Moser, in the 1997 edition (see RREA 9:340), has been completely revised for the 2003 edition. This new edition does not merely contain revisions of articles from the previous edition as well as new articles; rather, one notes that a number of entries have been dropped and that others have been significantly shortened. The number of articles has actually increased from 749 to 818, but the inclusion of new authors was made possible by the elimination of others. With regard to cabaret texts and trivial literature, for example, Dieter Hildebrandt, Utta Danella, Konsalik, and Simmel have not been included.

The subjective personal bibliographies, which are limited to independently published titles, were carefully assembled. Revised editions were included in the bibliographies, but new printings of previously published works were not. In general, the articles are somewhat longer than in the previous editions. It is upsetting that even for the most basic titles of secondary literature one must rely on other reference works, such as the Kritisches Lexikon der Gegenwartsliteratur (KLG) [Critical Dictionary of Contemporary Literature]. Further, a comparison to the KLG, which covers approximately the same time period, shows that some authors long included in KLG are missing from the new edition of Lexikon der deutschsprachigen Gegenwartsliteratur seit 1945. However, the new edition does include the growing genre of immigrant literature. In the current edition, as in the one from 1997, the majority of contributors are literary critics, and only a minority of them come from university literature departments. Considering the multiple changes from the previous edition, it is advisable to have both in one’s collection. [hak/bwv]

Lexikon der deutsch-jüdischen Literatur: jüdische Autorinnen und Autoren deutscher Sprache von der Aufklärung bis zur Gegenwart [Encyclopedia of German-Jewish Literature: Jewish Authors Writing in the German Language from the Enlightenment to the Present]. Andreas B. Kilcher. Frankfurt am Main: Suhrkamp-Taschenbuch-Verlag, 2003. xx, 664 p. ill. 21 cm. (Suhrkamp-Taschenbuch, 3529). ISBN 3-518-45529-X: EUR 19 [04-1-128]

This work was published in 2000 as the Metzler-Lexikon der deutsch-jüdischen Literatur (see RREA 6:117). New to this edition is the editor’s introduction giving a brief historical overview, placing the start of German-Jewish literature in the 18th century, when Jews first began to write secular, literary texts in the German language. Due to the overuse of foreign terms, the introduction is an unnecessarily complicated and tedious read. Fortunately, the individual portraits are written in more accessible language. Averaging between two and two-and-one-half pages, each article provides the person’s name, dates, a small black-and-white portrait, and a brief biography. The articles are uneven and contain many errors, such as the inclusion of less significant works at the expense of important ones. For example, one of the longest entries, that for Stefan Zweig, gives an incorrect number of works recorded in audio, wrong dates and places, and an arbitrary and neglectful selection of works, overlooking important works or putting them on a par with less significant ones. This is especially unfortunate given both Zweig’s renown and his difficult relationship to Judaism. The way in which each author expresses her/his Jewish consciousness should have been a primary focus of all the biographies, and in this regard, some (e.g., Hildesheimer) succeed better than others.

Inconsistencies and unevenness undermine the entire work, which nonetheless brings (back) to light less well-known or forgotten authors, who are listed in the name index. [gr/mm]

Lexikon deutschmährischer Autoren [Encyclopedia of German-Moravian Authors]. Ed. Ingeborg Fialová. Olomouc: Univerzita Palackého. Loose-leaf ed. ill. 28 cm. (Beiträge zur mährischen deutschsprachigen Literatur, 5). München: Kubon & Sagner, 2002. ISBN 80-244-0477-X: EUR 38.80 [04-1-129]

Moravia—former province of the Austro-Hungarian empire, from 1939-1945 part of Bohemia-Moravia under Nazi Germany, then part of Czechoslovakia under Soviet dominance, and after 1993 a region of the Czech Republic—may well be terra incognita for many. Even more unknown may be the works of the small group of German-speaking authors with ties to the area. A group of scholars at the German department of Palacky University in Olomouc (earlier: Olmütz) seeks to explore this unfamiliar literary terrain by publishing a series devoted to it. This encyclopedia of German-Moravian authors is the fifth volume of the series and the most ambitious one to date. Conceived as a “work in progress,” it is published in loose-leaf format, to be expanded every two years by 100 pages or so. Included are authors who were born in Moravia or spent time there. One can find a few familiar names, such as Peter Härtling and Maria von Ebner-Eschenbach, but it is the opportunity to discover lesser-known or forgotten authors that justifies acquiring this volume. The Biographisches Lexikon zur Geschichte der böhmischen Länder (see RREA 6:314), which aims to represent the culture of the Czechs, Germans, and Jews in the area, overlaps somewhat with this work, but is broader in scope. The editors suggest that the Lexikon deutschmährischer Autoren makes evident a greater cohesion among works from the Bohemian-Moravian territories than previously thought, and thus it may help to eliminate the sharp division that was traditionally made between the German-language literature of Prague and that of the provinces. [sh/akb]

Lexikon der rußlanddeutschen Literatur [Encyclopedia of Literature by Russian-Germans]. Annette Moritz. Essen: Klartext-Verlag, 2004. 207 p. 21 cm. (Forschungen zur Geschichte und Kultur der Ruß landdeutschen, 12, 2002/03, special issue). ISBN 3-89851-314-3: EUR 25 [04-1-131]

This encyclopedia of literature written by Russian-Germans offers biographies of 79 authors from the 18th century to the present, although the emphasis is primarily on the 20th century. Included are Russian-German authors who live(d) in the former Soviet Union and present-day Russia, as well as some who have become citizens of the Federal Republic of Germany. A special feature of the encyclopedia is that along with biographical and bibliographic data one finds numerous excerpts from the authors’ works. A similar lexicon by Herold Belger, Rußlanddeutsche Schriftsteller (see RREA 6:118), translated from the Russian, offers substantially more articles (270 in all), but they are shorter. Belger’s work also includes photographs, whereas Moritz’s does not. Another information source for this topic, although on a much smaller scale, is an article by Annelore Engel-Braunschmidt, “Literatur der Rußlanddeutschen,” in Interkulturelle Literatur in Deutschland: ein Handbuch (see RREA 7:100), which has extensive portraits of eight authors also treated in A. Moritz’s work, with better bibliographies. [sh/akb]

Deutschsprachige Gegenwartsliteratur seit 1989: Gattungen, Themen, Autoren; eine Auswahlbibliographie [Contemporary German-Language Literature since 1989: Genres, Themes, Authors; A Selective Bibliography]. Clemens Kammler, Jost Keller, Reinhard Wilczek, and Tanja van Hoorn. Heidelberg: Synchron-Wissenschaftsverlag der Autoren, 2003. xi, 319 p. 24 cm. ISBN 3-935025-56-4: EUR 24.80 [04-1-132]

The aim of this selective bibliography is to compile “the most important examples of secondary literature of the last 14 years.” (Articles from Germany’s rich Feuilletons—the cultural section in the newspapers—are not included.) It is divided into seven chapters (among them genres, subjects, “debates” and controversies, German literature outside Germany, teaching, and canon formation). Of these the longest (taking up about half the volume) and most interesting is devoted to 100 authors. The significance of so-called “immigration literature”—literature by authors of non-German origin—becomes quickly apparent with the presence of names like Yoko Tawada, Rafik Schami, and Feridun Zaimoglu. Not entirely free of errors, the citations may not have been checked against the works themselves in every instance. On the other hand, the addition of references to studies in languages other than German and English is commendable. [gr/sl]

Bibliographieren für Literaturwissenschaftler [Bibliographic Research for LiteraryScholars]. Benedikt Jeßing. Stuttgart: Reclam, 2003. 141 p. 15 cm. (UniversalBibliothek, 17640). ISBN 3-15-017640-9: EUR 3.80 [04-1-133]

The title of this introductory guide is somewhat misleading, because it focuses exclusively on research in German literary studies. Along with a similar publication by the author, Arbeitstechniken des literaturwissenschaftlichen Studiums [Research Techniques for the Study of Literature], it aims at a market segment that is already occupied by established standards such as Hansel’s Literaturrecherche für Germanisten (10th ed., 2003; earlier editions under the title Bücherkunde für Germanisten), Raabe’s Einführung in die Bücherkunde zur deutschen Literaturwissenschaft (1994), and several others. This guide fails to replace or even complement the existing ones. There are some factual inaccuracies, and one could disagree with the inclusion of some literary histories and the omission of others under the rubric of dictionaries. More importantly, the bibliographic entries are not always up-to-date, and in several cases a much more recent edition of a listed work is available. In addition, a major retrospective tool such as Heiner Schmidt’s Quellenlexikon, although included with an annotation, is not recognized in its importance. (See RREA 10:95 for a review of the CD-ROM edition.) Perhaps the greatest flaw of Jeßing’s introduction is its refusal to acknowledge the convenience of electronic resources. In an example of a systematic research project the author suggests starting with the Bibliographie der deutschen Sprach- und Literaturwissenschaft (Eppelsheimer/ Koettelwesch), which is a commendable choice, but instructs the student to work his or her way through the annual volumes, as if the CD-ROM and the even more user-friendly internet version were not available in practically every academic library. Libraries do not need to purchase this introduction, and one hesitates to recommend it to students. It promotes an unnecessarily time-consuming approach to scholarly research. Students’ time would be better spent on other ways of improving the quality of their papers. [hjb/rs]

Lexikon der antiken Gestalten in den deutschen Texten des Mittelalters [Lexicon of Classical Figures in Medieval German Texts]. Ed. Manfred Kern and Alfred Ebenbauer with the collaboration of Silvia Krämer-Seifert. Berlin [et al.]: de Gruyter, 2003. xci, 722 p. 25 cm. ISBN 3-11-016257-1: EUR 158 (Wissenschaftliche Buchgemeinschaft ed., EUR 118) [04-1-138]

On the basis of a comprehensive corpus of Middle High German texts (ca. 1050-1350), this dictionary offers information not only on which mythological and historical figures of Greek and Roman antiquity (up to the middle of the 4th century A.D.) occur, but also exactly where, in what context, and by what route. This evidence is given in nearly 1,200 signed articles by Manfred Kern and Silvia Krämer-Seifert, headed usually by the “normalized” Latin form of the name and organized uniformly as outlined in the second part of the introduction. The commentary section in each article contains extensive information on the history of influence, that is, its course from antiquity by way of Middle Latin and/or Romance literature and thus on the sources used by the Middle High German authors, on themes and motifs, etc. The commentary section is supplemented by citations from the secondary literature. Not surprisingly, one of the longest articles concerns a historic figure, Alexander the Great (34 columns); it is exceeded only by the entry on Venus (46 columns).

It does not appear that any similarly comprehensive reference work about the survival of ancient figures exists for any other medieval national literature. If one existed for French medieval literature, there would be many possibilities for comparative work. [sh/gh]

Brecht-Chronik: 1898-1956. Werner Hecht. Special reprint of the 2d ed., 1998. Frankfurt am Main: Suhrkamp, 2003. 1,315 p. ill. 25 cm. ISBN 3-518-41481-X(pbk): EUR 29.90 [04-01-142]

The Brecht-Chronik, first published in 1997, then reissued without revision for the Brecht centennial in 1998, appears now as a special paperback edition. In contrast to the four-column synoptic chronology of life, work, history, and culture published in volume 6 of the Brecht-Handbook (see RREA 10:90), the Brecht-Chronik presents descriptive summaries and Brecht quotations in straightforward chronological order. The editor draws on his knowledge as a producer with the Berlin Ensemble, co-editor of the Große kommentierte Berliner und Frankfurter Ausgabe of Brecht’s works, and acquaintance with people in Brecht’s inner circle, as well as on the wealth of material from the Bertolt-Brecht-Archiv. Essential to all libraries, this work replaces the Brecht-Chronik: Daten zu Leben und Werk (München, 1997). [sh/ab]

Brecht-Handbuch: in 5 Bänden [Brecht Handbook in Five Volumes]. Ed. Jan Knopf. Completely rev. ed. Stuttgart; Weimar: Metzler. 25 cm. ISBN 3-476->01828-8 (set) [04-1-143]

Vol. 4. Schriften, Journale, Briefe [Writings, Journals, Letters]. 2003. x, 547 p. ISBN 3-476-01832-6: EUR 39.95

Vol. 5. Register, Chronik, Materialien [Index, Chronology, Materials]. 2003. v, 233 p. ill. ISBN 3-476-01833-4: EUR 39.95

After the four-volume Goethe-Handbuch (see RREA 5:116), which is already out of print, the Brecht-Handbuch is the largest of the author handbooks published by Metzler. Despite its five volumes it was published in only two years. The first three volumes—volume 1 concerns the poems, volume 2 the dramas, and volume 3 the prose, films, and screenplays—were reviewed in RREA 8:126. The fourth volume treats Brecht’s theoretical writings, mainly on theatrical topics and the then-new media (film and radio), but also on poetry. Volume 5 contains, following the pattern of the Goethe-Handbuch, a chronology, “materials,” a selective bibliography, and indexes. The chronology is 130 pages long and lists in parallel columns important dates from Brecht’s life, his works, events of the times, and culture and scholarship. The detailed chronology is a rich and easily grasped source of information, although it naturally does not compete with Werner Hecht’s Brecht-Chronik: 1898-1956 (see RREA 10:89). The short section headed “Materialien” consists of facsimile pages. The bibliography is 300 pages long; selection principles are mentioned nowhere, but it is evident that the secondary literature does not go back beyond the 1970s.

The volume closes with an index of Brecht’s works (in which the definite and indefinite articles unfortunately are not disregarded) and an index of persons. The editor can be justly proud that this multi-volume handbook was published within only a few years—more so because the conception and execution make a unified impression. [hak/gh]

Hugo-von-Hofmannsthal-Brief-Chronik: Regest-Ausgabe [Chronology and Summary of Hugo von Hofmannsthal’s Letters]. Ed. Martin E. Schmid. 3 vols. Heidelberg: Winter, 2003. xv p. 2,868 cols. 128 p. 28 cm. ISBN 3-8253-0923-1 (set): EUR 258 [04-1-144]

The first two volumes of this very elegant and usable edition list the published letters of Hugo von Hofmannsthal in chronological order. Sources for each letter are given, in collections that appeared between 1924 and 1995. Some letters are reproduced in their entirety, others only partially. Annotations to the letters identify the people, places, and works that are mentioned in them. One sees more clearly in this edition the many facets of Hofmannsthal’s personality than can be gleaned from isolated letters. The third volume cannot be praised as highly. It contains six indexes—personal names, Hofmannsthal’s works, place names, serials, and foreign authors, sources, and symbols—that appear to have been compiled by a computer, resulting in confusing and sometimes amusing entries; it would have profited from human intervention. [gr/mrh]

Bibliographie Arno Schmidt. Karl-Heinz Müther. Bielefeld: Aisthesis-Verlag. 26 cm. (Bibliographien zur deutschen Literaturgeschichte, 1) [04-1-147]

Deutsches Schriftstellerlexikon: ein Who’s who der deutschsprachigen Literatur [Dictionary of German Writers: A Who’s Who of German-Language Literature]. Ed. Renate Stahl. Dietzenbach: Bund Deutscher Schriftsteller BDS. 22 cm. (Bund Deutscher Schriftsteller, Postfach 1507, D-63155 Dietzenbach, fax [49 6074] 47540, e-mail: info@schriftsteller-verband.de) [04-2-447]

Vol. 6. 2004. 815 p. ISBN (incorrect) 3-00-004759-X: EUR 128

Previously published by de Gruyter (Berlin), the current volume of Kürschners deutscher Literatur-Kalender contains some 11,866 articles consisting of contributions submitted by the authors themselves; entries written by the editor; “starred articles,” i.e., names unaccompanied by any bio-bibliographical information; and entries for authors who have recently died but who are not yet represented by articles. Contents of the appendices consist of necrologies, events, literary translators, publishers of belles lettres, literary agencies, radio programs, journals, light reading, author and literary societies, prizes, and a geographical overview. The web site gives the names of all persons included, the geographical overview, and 3,500 links to pages relevant to German literature.

About 1,800 authors are listed in Deutsches Schriftstellerlexikon, with information presumably submitted by the authors themselves. This number alone distinguishes it greatly from Kürschners deutscher Literatur-Kalender with its 11,866 entries. It can be seen only as a supplementary work to Kürschners, and it is questionable whether it is worth purchasing, considering the unfavorable price differential. It also lacks the useful appendices of Kürschners. [sh/mjc]

Datenbank Quellenlexikon; Datenbasis: gesamter Textbestand der etwa 600.000 Literaturhinweise; deutsche Literatur- und Geistesgeschichte; internationale Bibliographie 1945-1990 [Source Lexicon Database: Includes Entire Text of 600,000 Literature References to German Literary and Intellectual History; International Bibliography 1945-1990]. Heiner Schmidt. Duisburg: Verlag für Pädagogische Dokumentation, 2004. CD-ROM. Print edition published as: Quellenlexikon zur deutschen Literaturwissenschaft. EUR 880 (EUR 580 for subscribers to the print edition) [04-2-448]

[Ed. note: Volume 1 of Feuchtwanger’s works was reviewed in RREA 5:115, and the citation is included here for the sake of completeness. The concluding lines from the first RREA review are worth repeating. “From the holdings information included i n the work it becomes apparent that, along with the Deutsche Bibliothek in Frankfurt, the Feuchtwanger Memorial Library at the University of Southern California (USC) holds a major research collection of Feuchtwanger’s works. It comprises the bibliographic and working library and archive of the writer, bequeathed to the University by his widow, Marta Feuchtwanger. Information about the Feuchtwanger Library and USC’s other archival collections of German exiles (Hanns Eisler, Heinrich Mann, Ludwig Marcuse) is available by contacting Marje Schuetze-Coburn, curator of the collection, at schuetze@usc.edu, or from the Feuchtwanger Library web site.]

The publication of volumes three and four completes the Feuchtwanger bibliography. The four volumes have been extensively researched and solidly compiled, and this set will remain the standard work for a long time to come.

Volume 2 includes 705 entries for translations of Feuchtwanger’s works into 38 languages, followed by an extensive listing of his shorter publications, adaptations, and dramatic productions, from which one may glean quite a bit (for example, after the infamous production of Jew Süss, two other film productions were planned: a 1958 version with O.W. Fischer, and 1966 with Romy Schneider, but neither was realized). It would have been preferable if the shorter works were organized chronologically instead of alphabetically, as they are less familiar. Furthermore, the personal name index is too short.

The title of volume 3, “Secondary Literature,” is somewhat misleading, because volume 4 also treats secondary literature. While volume 3 concentrates on the general secondary literature, volume 4 focuses on sub-monograph secondary literature devoted to individual works. The bibliography of secondary literature is extensive and spans the earliest works of criticism through the year 2000. Volume 3, which is broken down by publication type, includes even master’s theses. The category “references in books” seems excessive, as it is potentially boundless. In volume 4, the works are arranged alphabetically by language, although works in German always appear first. As with the other volumes, enormous effort was made to ensure completeness. One common personal name index, instead of two separate indexes for volumes 3 and 4, would be more useful. Likewise, it would be helpful if the index referred not to the page number, but to the entry number instead. While there are some weaknesses regarding the index, they do not detract from the overall quality of the work. [ab/jmw]

Traumwelten: Bilder zum Werk Karl Mays [Dream Worlds: Images Relating to the Works of Karl May]. Wolfgang Hermesmeier and Stefan Schmatz. Ed. Lothar and Bernhard Schmid. Bamberg; Radebeul: Karl May Verlag. 18 cm. [04-2-453]

The same authors who in 2000 published the Karl-May-Bibliographie 1913-1945 (see RREA 7:110) now present the first of two volumes on the illustrators of Karl May’s works. This volume covers works produced up to the time of May’s death in 1912. The main section features articles on 47 illustrators with short biographical descriptions, each followed by a bibliography of the Karl May editions illustrated by that artist, including translations. Shorter sections cover anonymous illustrators and special cases. Unfortunately, no secondary literature is cited, although sometimes mentioned. Neither the illustrators nor an analysis of their work is the focus of this book, but simply Karl May’s work as presented in pictures. It would have been more worthwhile to have conceived the work as a contribution to the study of illustrations of popular literature in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. The second volume, covering illustrators from 1913 on, was announced for fall 2005. [sh/hsb]

Heiner-Müller-Handbuch: Leben, Werk, Wirkung [Heiner Müller Handbook: Life, Work, Influence]. Ed. Hans-Thies Lehmann and Patrick Primavesi. Stuttgart; Weimar: Metzler, 2003. xiii, 525 p. ill. 25 cm. ISBN 3-476-01807-5: EUR 49.95 [04-2-454]

Gerhard Rühm—ein Leben im Werk 1954-2004: ein chronologisches Verzeichnis seiner Arbeiten [Gerhard Rühm—A Life in his Works, 1954-2004: A Chronological Listing of his Production]. Michael Fisch. Bielefeld: Aisthesis-Verlag, 2005. 201 p. 21 cm. (Bibliographien zur deutschen Literaturgeschichte, 14). ISBN 3-89528-489-0: EUR 29.80 [04-2-455]

In conjunction with the celebration of his 75th birthday in February 2005, this bibliography of the work of Gerhard Rühm—Viennese author of concrete and experimental poetry, not to mention parody chansons, plays, fairy tales, or text and photomontages—appeared in January 2005. It is limited to the primary literature, all examples of which were personally seen by the bibliographer, who was given access to Rühm’s personal archives. The chronologically arranged entries for 742 titles leave little to be desired, although it is somewhat irritating that series are indicated by brackets, which are also used for the annotations, so that it is difficult to tell one from the other.

Unfortunately, an index of names and titles is not included, possibly because the time it would have taken to produce one would have precluded the work’s being published before the birthday celebration. Thus one can consider this bibliography to be only a preliminary version: a subsequent edition would be improved by detailed analyses of the works, and by the inclusion of secondary literature and an index. [sh/nb]

Bibliographie Peter Rühmkorf (1951-2004). Wolfgang Rasch. 2 vols. Bielefeld: Aisthesis-Verlag. xviii, 386, 406 p. 21 cm. (Bibliographien zur deutschen Literaturgeschichte, 13). ISBN 3-89528-476-9 (set): EUR 98 [04-2-456]

Wenn ich mal richtig Ich sag …: ein Bilder-Lesebuch [Whenever I Truly Say “I”… : An Illustrated Reader]. Peter Rühmkorf. Göttingen: Steidl, 2004. 153 p. ill. 32 cm. ISBN 3-86521-049-X: EUR 29.50 [04-2-457]

Although Peter Rühmkorf is known primarily as a lyric poet, his literary and publicistic work and influence are significantly more diverse; the bibliographer is justified in presenting him as “author, critic, and poet,…publicist, teacher, and troubadour.” This exhaustive bibliography, based on personal inspection of the titles, appeared in time for Rühmkorf ’s 75th birthday in October 2004. It encompasses 4,250 titles that were written between April 1951 and May 2004—1,850 of them in the first volume and 2,400 in the second. The compiler had access to Rühmkorf ’s personal archives, as well as to papers he had already donated to the German Literature Archive in Marbach.

The work is divided into 25 chapters, covering such rubrics as “Editions of the Complete Works,” “Films (Scripts), Television Pieces…,” “Life and Work,” “Prizes and Other Honors,” and “Chronological Survey of Extended Journeys, Readings, and Other Events.” Arrangement within the chapters is u sually chronological; each notation of a first edition of a primary text is followed by all later appearances of the text, in collected works, anthologies, newspapers, offprints, etc. References to reviews (included in volume 2) are given, as well. Detailed information—including contents, date of first and later editions, number of copies published, and a description of dust jackets—is given about complete editions and individual publications. Volume 1 contains an index of Rühmkorf’s works, and another of his poems. Volume 2 includes a personal name index that covers both volumes.

That Rühmkorf ’s personal archives contain not only writings but also countless photos is documented by the other work noted here, which accompanied an exhibit in the Hamburg Museum of Arts and Crafts, with Rühmkorf offering a commentary on the course of his life: from his birth in Dortmund as an illegitimate child (who nonetheless had the famed theologian Karl Barth as godparent) to a last, undated picture of him as a 75-year-old. Remarks from numerous contemporaries are included as well, as are letters exchanged with them, and also reproductions of book covers and title pages, all offering a helpful supplement to the bibliography volumes. [sh/nb]

Shakespeare—deutsch: Bibliographie der Übersetzungen und Bearbeitungen; zugleich Bestandsnachweis der Shakespeare-Übersetzungen der Herzogin-Anna-Amalia-Bibliothek Weimar [Shakespeare in German: Bibliography of the Translations and Adaptations, as Well as a Catalog of the Shakespeare Translations Held at the Duchess Anna Amalia Library in Weimar]. Hansjürgen Blinn and Wolf Gerhard Schmidt; catalog by Corinna Deibel and Ines Boettcher. Berlin: Eric Schmidt, 2003. 279 p. 24 cm. ISBN 3-503-06193-2: EUR 59.80 [04-1-151]

This companion to Blinn’s 1993 bibliography of secondary literature about German versions of Shakespeare’s works turns its attention to translations and adaptations (including films and musical works created by native German speakers). A historical introduction and a list of relevant bibliographies, catalogs, and databases precede the bibliography itself, which covers anthologies first, then adaptations of text selections, then treatments of single works (in alphabetical order by English title). Arrangement within each category or sub-category is chronological. Most entries have annotations that may include performance information, references to other bibliographies, and assessments of the quality of translation. Most of the books examined belonged to the Deutsche Shakespeare-Gesellschaft [German Shakespeare Society] collection at the Anna Amalia Library in Weimar; these are marked by an asterisk. There are indexes to (1) works of Shakespeare; (2) cinematic and musical adaptations; (3) translators, adapters, and editors; (4) publishers and printers; (5) illustrators and composers (separate indexes for each would have been better); and (6) other significant names.

The compilers disavow any claim to completeness, citing specifically Reclam reprints and school-text editions as publication classes not covered. Many translations in anthologies with works by other authors will not be found here either. Programs and other documentation of stagings and recordings receive limited attention, even though more thorough coverage would have been welcome. Also very spotty is coverage of theatrical scripts published “in manuscript,” although many of them can be found in special library collections. [sh/gw]

Literaturwissenschaftliches Wörterbuch für Romanisten: (LWR) [Literary Dictionary for Romance Scholars]. Rainer Hess, Gustav Siebenmann, and Tilbert Stegmann. 4th rev. and expanded ed. Tübingen: Francke, 2003. xii, 365 p. 22 cm. (Uni-Taschenbücher, 1373). ISBN 3-7720-8031-6 (Francke); ISBN 3-8252-1373-0 (UTB): EUR 24.90 [04-1-155]

This revised and expanded fourth edition of the LWR preserves the fundamental goals and organization of the third edition of 1989. The much-discussed dominance of French within Romance Studies leaves its mark on LWR, but the role of other languages is also recognized, resulting in a broad network of articles that provides a wider perspective. Although some articles are less thorough in their critical assessment of established research and some significant terms are oddly omitted, LWR provides an excellent initial orientation to specific themes and connections within the general framework of Romance Studies. It is well and consistently organized, and expansions and revisions of previous articles reflect the most recent developments in the field, making this an indispensable reference work for students and teachers. [dw/ab]

Dictionnaire des oeuvres érotiques: domaine français; table de renvois; répertoire des auteurs et des oeuvres [Dictionary of Erotic Writings Published in France; Table of References; Index of Authors and Writings]. Ed. Pascal Pia. Paris: Laffont, 2001. xiv, 520 p. ill. 20 cm. (Bouqins). ISBN 2-221-09318-6: EUR 21.19 [04-1-156]

This is a slightly updated paperback edition of a work that originally appeared in 1971. It contains approximately 700 entries that deal with French erotic writings by approximately 500 writers, from the Middle Ages to the present. The definition of erotic includes works of great literary merit, such as Madame Bovary, as well as simple pornography. The individual entries are generally quite brief, but occasionally they deal at some length with several publications by the same author. Significantly more French-language erotic literature is covered in the Bibliographie des ouvrages érotiques publiés clandestinement en français entre 1880 et 1920 (see RREA 9:107). There are title and author indexes. [sh/ldl]

Dictionnaire thématique du roman de mœurs, 1850-1914 [Thematic Dictionary of the Social Novel: 1850-1914]. Ed. Philippe Hamon and Alexandrine Viboud. Paris: Presses Sorbonne Nouvelle, 2003. 544 p. 24 cm. ISBN 2-87854-259-2: EUR 30

El Libro popular is number 7 in a 19-volume collection of studies titled Colección literatura breve, concerning Spanish and Latin American popular literature from the first half of the 20th century. The collection is published by the Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (CSIC), the largest public research organization in Spain. Number 5 in the series, devoted to La Novela semanal, was reviewed in RREA 8:137. Other titles in the series include La Novela corta; La Novela de vértice y la novela del sábado; La Novela cómica; La Novela del sábado (1953-1955): catálogo y contexto histórico literario; Lecturas (1921-1937); La Novela mundial; La Novela semanal cinematográfica; La Novela teatral; and La Novela semanal (Buenos Aires 1917-1926): un proyecto editorial para la ciudad moderna.

The various Libro popular series made printed literature affordable to the Spanish working and lower-middle classes from the 1910s through the 1930s. It was an effort to diversify readership and increase sales by offering simple editions of contemporary novels and other literary forms. The Libro popular series produced complete single works, as opposed to the chapters or excerpts printed in the popular literatura de cordel [string literature] format from the 17th through the mid-19th centuries, as well as in folletines [pamphlets] or novelas por entregas [serialized novels] that were in demand in the 19th century.

The first series—El Libro popular: revista literaria—was founded in Madrid in July 1912 and ceased publication in July 1914, comprising 104 regular issues and two special issues about bullfighting. Only contemporary Spanish authors were featured. The design was economical and attractive, including several illustrations per issue. It aimed at an adult audience across many social classes.

The second series—El Libro popular: publicación mensual literaria—should have followed a monthly frequency, as its title implied, but it soon turned irregular, producing only ten issues by the time it ceased publication. It was published in Madrid between March 1922 and May 1923. The goal of this series was to offer simple, and thus affordable, editions of novels from famous contemporary authors in Spain and abroad. This second edition of El Libro popular contained no illustrations or fanciful fonts.

Amelina Correa, the author and compiler of this study, also provides limited information regarding two serialized publications of the same title published in the 1920s in Barcelona. Neither of them bears any relation to the homonymous publications from Madrid. The first one did not even have any fictional content. Little is know about this series aside from the fact that Editorial B. Bauza published it monthly in 1927. No chronological study is provided.

The second series from Barcelona was published by Editorial Perceo and printed by Impresos Costa. Its literary content was miscellaneous, including essays, novels, articles, short stories, biographies, and theater. The author was unable to find a complete set of this series, which explains the lack of a chronological study.

Correa investigates each series individually, starting with El Libro popular: revista literaria, which is the focus of her work. El Libro popular: publicación mensual literaria and the series published in Barcelona are delegated to a ten-page appendix. The only series with a numerical index are the ones printed in Madrid. The information pertaining to the ones from Barcelona is contained in four pages.

The structure of Correa’s work is simple. Following a series of notes and a prologue, the reader finds a historical and descriptive study of El Libro popular: revista literaria along with a bibliography. The next section is an index of the 106 issues that were published. The bibliographical records are listed by issue number (therefore chronologically) and provide individual fields for author, title, genre, place and date of publication, printer, pagination, size, signature of the author, place and date of signature, illustrator, illustrations, editor-in-chief, contents on the inside front cover, contents on the inside back cover, contents on the outside back cover, and synopsis.

The appendix contains a short historical and descriptive study of El Libro popular: publicación mensual literaria, along with an bibliographic index of the ten issues that were published. The fields employed are the same if applicable. On the last four pages of her work, Correa provides a very limited study of the series from Barcelona.

Correa also provides a table of contents and a guide to the fields employed in the index.

El Libro popular comes with a CD-ROM that contains a database for the indexes of the Madrid series. All of the CD-ROMs produced through the Colección literatura breve series use the same software. They come with instructions and list in the PC’s Programs folder as CSIC-LITI Buscalibros.

The interface of Buscalibros has a simple organizational and graphic layout. It allows the user to search records by specific fields—title, author, collection, issue number, and illustrator. Each field is listed at the top of the screen and has a button. To find a record, the user must click on a field button, pick an entry through a drop-down menu, and then click on the Buscar [Search] button in the middle of the screen. A title or list of titles will appear in the Libros encontrados [Books Found] box. To view a record, one must highlight a title and click on the Examinar [View] button at the bottom of the screen. Users may select several titles at a time but will only view one record per screen. There are no options for exporting or saving records, aside from the print command.

Both in the book and the CD-ROM, Correa assigns the code LP to El Libro popular: revista literaria, and PL to El Libro popular: publicación mensual literaria. If the user wishes to search for the third issue of El Libro popular: revista literaria, then he/she must click on the Nº Colección [Issue Number] field and pick “003LP.”

The records in the CD-ROM index includes fewer fields than in the book—collection/series, series/issue number, author, title, place of publication, publication date, illustrator, size, pagination, price, publisher, and comments. The Comentarios [Comments] box offers information such as subtitles. For a comprehensive record the user should consult the printed index.

An informative reference tool with a very specific scope, El Libro popular should occupy a useful place in academic libraries with research-level collections on Spanish Peninsular literature.

Catálogo de autores teatrales del siglo XVII [Catalog of Dramatists of the 17th Century]. Héctor Urzáiz Tortajada. 2 vols. Madrid: Fundación Universitaria Española, 2002. 906 p. 29 cm. (Investigaciones bibliográficas sobre autores españoles, 5). ISBN 8-47392-497-5: EUR 62.50 [04-1-161]

The stated purpose of this bio-bibliography is to make the most complete presentation possible of Golden Age Spanish drama. That is a formidable goal, because the lesser-known writers of this period, not to mention the voluminous body of anonymous plays, have not been documented in a comprehensive fashion. Tortajada’s work serves to supplant the now dated 1860 (reprint 1969) Catálogo bibliográfico y biográfico by La Barrera y Leirado, and complements Navarro’s Catálogo de autores teatrales del siglo XVIII, upon which it was modeled. The author has evaluated all available sources in producing a work (his dissertation) that covers 1,107 authors and ca. 1,900 anonymous plays. [sh/rlk]

Die Sammlung spanischer “comedias” in der Universitätsbibliothek Freiburg [The Collection of Spanish “Comedias” in the Freiburg University Library]. Edwin Stark. 2 vols. Kassel: Reichenberger, 2003. liii, 842 p. ill. 24 cm. (Teatro del siglo de oro: Bibliografías y catálogos, 37/38). ISBN 3-935004-66-4: EUR 174 [04-1-162]

This catalog, written by Edwin Stark, a retired employee of the Freiburg University Library, describes that institution’s extensive yet little-known special collection of Spanish dramas from the 17th-century Golden Age (siglo de oro). Although these collections were described briefly in the Handbuch der historischen Buchbestände in Deutschland (see RREO 95-2-197), they have only now been made easily accessible.

The collections were received by the university as gifts, the largest part from the Frankfurt independent scholar Adolf Schaeffer (1845-1928), who gave 700 volumes to the university in 1898 and bequeathed the rest in gratitude for the honorary doctorate given to him for his achievements in Spanish literary scholarship. Another sizeable chunk comes from the Freiburg scholar of Romance languages and literature Gottfried Baist, who donated his private collection in 1921. Altogether 1,023 dramas (comedias sueltas) are listed alphabetically by title. The first and last two lines of the text are given, followed by the colophon and column title; the annotation contains the collation, lists the curators and notes the handwriting used, identifies the author (where possible) and names or estimates the year of printing and the printer, with the volume in which the work is preserved named, and the call number given. This detailed description is meant to identify the individual printings unambiguously, a task even some of today’s catalogs are not always up to. There is an 18-page appendix listing 40 handwritten copies of printed works and another appendix listing 262 pamphlets with non-drama subject matter.

It is to be hoped that records (with at least some minimal descriptive data) for the individual dramas in this collection will someday be added to the catalog of the Südwestdeutscher Bibliotheksverbund [Southwestern Germany Library Network] to which Freiburg belongs, and to which that library has already added records for many other special collections. Even in the electronic age, however, a well-done catalog like this one is a worthwhile enterprise. [sh/rb]

Diccionario de personajes de Calderón [Dictionary of the Characters in Calderón’s Plays]. Ed. Javier Huerta Calvo and Héctor Urzáiz Tortajada. Madrid: Editorial Pliegos, 2002. 528 p. 23 cm. ISBN 84-88435-71-1: EUR 36.58 [04-1-163]

This lexicon of all personages appearing in Calderón’s plays is modeled on a 1961 work that performs the same service for the other great dramatist of the siglo de oro, Lope de Vega. Numerous collaborators were recruited to go through all of Calderón’s dramatic works, list all the characters in each, and compose entries of varying lengths. Organization is alphabetical by character’s name; each entry is signed by its contributor. Following the character’s name is the title or titles of the play(s) in which that character appears. Abbreviations at the foot of the entry refer to the works listed in the bibliography on p. 619-622. For characters who were also real persons, a short description of their lives and significance apart from their appearance in Calderón’s plays is included. Allegorical characters such as “Charity” are also listed. Real or biblical persons who are mentioned in a play without actually appearing as a character receive a separate entry with the heading Figura de …. For example, there are two entries for Abraham: the entry “Abraham” deals with those plays in which Abraham actually appears as a character; the entry Figura de Abraham deals with plays in which Abraham is mentioned without appearing as a character. Reference is made from the first type of entry to the Figura de … type. In the appendices, personages are grouped according to the frequency of their appearance and their function in the drama(s). [sh/crc]

Bibliographisches Handbuch der Calderón-Forschung = Manual bibliográfico calderoniano [Bibliographic Handbook of Calderón Research]. Ed. Kurt and Roswitha Reichenberger. Kassel: Reichenberger. 30 cm. Parts 1 and 3 published by Thiele und Schwarz, Kassel [04-1-164]

Part 2, 2. Die Literatur über Calderón und seine Werke 1680-1980 [Literature on Calderón and his Works, 1680-1980]. 2003. p. 605-1,148. ISBN 3-935004-92-3: EUR 245

Parts 1 and 3 of this work (issued in 1979 and 1981 as volumes 1 and 2 of the series Würzburger romanistische Arbeiten and reviewed in the Bulletin of Hispanic Studies 66:2, 1989, p. 180-181) were followed in 1999 by the first volume of part 2 (see RREA 6:139), now completed by its second volume. The concluding part 4, which will cover the reception of Calderón’s work in world literature and contain indexes, is yet to come.

Part 1 of the Reichenbergers’ work consisted of a comprehensive catalog of Calderón’s works in manuscript and early and modern editions and translations; part 3 offers descriptions of Calderonian sueltas (editions of single works) and a provisional chronology.

Part 2 complements these with a survey of the secondary literature up to 1980. The Reichenbergers’ daughter, Eva Reichenberger, is at work to bring the survey up to the present, making this a family undertaking extending over a quarter-century. It is fundamental in every sense of the word and indispensable for all libraries supporting research in Spanish literature of the Siglo de oro and its reverberations in succeeding centuries. [sh/dss]

As primeiras vanguardas em Portugal: bibliografia e antologia crítica [The First Vanguards in Portugal: Bibliography and Anthology of Criticism]. K. David Jackson. Frankfurt am Main: Vervuert; Madrid: Iberoamericana, 2003. xxxi, 589 p. 23 cm. (Bibliografia e antologia crítica das vanguardas literárias no mundo ibérico e luso-brasileiro, 5). ISBN 3-89354-294-9 (Vervuert), ISBN 84-8489-089-9 (Iberoamericana): EUR 45 [04-1-165]

Harald Wentzlaff-Eggebert, Merlin H. Forster, and K. David Jackson have joined forces with the specialist publisher Vervuert in Frankfurt and its subsidiary, Iberoamericana in Madrid, to produce a nine- or more volume series about Iberian and Latin American avant-garde literature. Currently the volumes pair a bibliographical section with a collection of essays. A problem is that the series and cover short titles are unstable, alternating between Spanish and Portuguese, depending on the content of each volume. To further complicate matters, the series enumeration is given only in volumes 1-4, which are devoted to, respectively: Brazil; Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador, and Peru; Spain; and Mexico and Central America. Series enumeration is omitted as of volume 5, although the publishers’ catalogs list all the volumes. Planned are volumes for Catalan, Chilean, and Peruvian avant-garde literature, as well as a general volume for Cuba, Puerto Rico, the Dominican Republic, and Venezuela.

The bibliography of the current volume consists of a general part, organized by genre (711 titles), a section devoted to 16 Portuguese authors (2,061 titles), and an appendix about surrealism (92 titles). The longest section by far is devoted to Fernando Pessoa. Only a few titles receive concise annotations. The bibliography is accessible through an author index.

Four chapters comprise the essays, consisting of 35 contributions. It is unfortunate that access to the essays is not provided through subject and person indexes. [sh/rm]

Las vanguardias literarias en Argentina, Uruguay y Paraguay: bibliografía y antología crítica [Literary Vanguards in Argentina, Uruguay, and Paraguay: Bibliography and Anthology of Criticism]. Carlos García and Dieter Reichardt. Frankfurt am Main: Vervuert; Madrid: Iberoamericana, 2004. xxi, 538 p. 22 cm. (Bibliografía y antología crítica de las vanguardias literarias en el mundo ibérico, 6). ISBN 3-89354-295-7 (Vervuert); 84-8489-111-9 (Iberoamericana): EUR 29.80 [04-1-166]

“Vanguards” in the title of this work refers to literatures of the first half of the 20th century. In both the bibliography and the anthology, the emphasis is on Argentina, with much less information about literature from Uruguay, and even less on that from Paraguay. The bibliography includes general titles, anthologies, periodicals, and authors (for authors, citing both books and articles, original and secondary material). Some entries are annotated, and there is an author index. The anthology of criticism offers original or reprinted works about avant-garde literature in Latin America; it lacks an index. [sh/mrh]

Repertori de catalanòfils [Catalanophiles Repertory]. Barcelona: Publicacions de l’Abadia de Montserrat, 1983-. 19 cm. (Estudis de llengua i literatura catalanes, …).

Vol. 6. Ed. Núria Mañé and Albert Soler. 2000. 315 p. (…, 41). ISBN 84-8415-256-1: EUR 16.50.

An RREA Original Review by Amadeu Pons (University of Barcelona, Spain)

The Repertori de catalanòfils [RC] provides bio-bibliographies of members of some learned associations of Catalan language and literature, such as the International Association of Catalan Language and Literature, Anglo-Catalan Society, Associazione Italiana di Studi Catalani, and North American Catalan Society. All kinds of documents are included—even those published online—whatever their language or place of publication. Obviously, the focus is on Catalan language and literature.

This bibliography includes a total of about 3,200 documents published between 1980 and 2000 (there are several included as “in press” and “in preparation”) from 170 authors. This is the fourth update of the bibliography. The initial installment appeared in 19831984 (2 volumes), the second in 1988 (1 volume), and the third in 1998 (2 volumes). RC is not a cumulative publication: each of the updates includes only new entries.

The work is arranged alphabetically by author. For each author basic data is provided: employment, address, telephone number, and often e-mail address. The bibliographical references for each author are organized chronologically and presented without comment. The references to monographs do not include number of pages or isbn. In this issue there is no index, introduction, nor appendix. In the 1998 edition a systematic subject index was included.

The value of this work is limited for two main reasons: first, it only includes the work of the scholars from the groups it covers, and secondly, retrieval of the information can only be done by the authors’ names. In addition, the fact that this Repertori is a printed work limits its easy updating. Anyone interested in Catalan language and literature has to be aware of other more comprehensive and flexible resources: Traces (begun in 1988, with some 50.000 records at present) or Qüern (begun in 1995; last updated in 2003), which is occasionally annotated. Because of the existence of these more accessible and searchable alternative resources, RC will be of interest only to the largest collections of Catalan philology and literature.

Los españoles en las letras cubanas durante el siglo XX: diccionario bio-bibliográfico [Spaniards in Cuban Letters During the 20th Century: Bio-Bibliographic Dictionary]. Jorge Domingo Cuadriello. Sevilla: Renacimiento. 24 cm.

Vol. 1. 2002. 270 p. ISBN 84-8472-069-1: EUR 18

An RREA Original Review by Lynn M. Shirey (Harvard University)

Jorge Domingo has chosen the end of the Spanish-American War and the beginning of Cuban independence in 1899 as the starting point for this biographical and bibliographical study. Contending that Spanish-Cuban cultural relations continued to be close after this rupture, he has assembled information about more that 700 important Spanish writers who lived and worked in Cuba during the 20th century.

Domingo has published both bibliographical and original works relating to Cuban culture. Collaborative works include Sentido de la derrota: selección de textos de escritores exiliados en Cuba [A Sense of Defeat: Selection of Texts by Writers Exiled in Cuba] (1998), with Róger González (Barcelona, 1998) and Nuevo diccionario cubano de seudónimos [New Cuban Dictionary of Pseudonyms] with Ricardo Hernández Otero (2000). The first work is an anthology of texts by Spaniards exiled in Cuba following the Spanish Civil War of 1936-1939. He is also the author of the short story collections La sombra en el muro (1994) and Diacronía y otros sucesos (1996). A frequent contributor to Cuban literary journals such as Letras cubanas and El caimán barbudo, he also directs the journal La Rambla cubana. In 1992, he received a Cuban prize for a project with the same title as the present volume, which has at last been published in Spain.

Important general bibliographies of Cuban literature include the Bibliografía cubana del siglo XX, by Carlos M. Trelles (1907-1917); the Boletín del Anuario Bibliográfico cubano, compiled by Fermín Peraza Sarausa (1938-1962); and the various publications of the Cuban national library, Biblioteca Nacional José Martí. Additional bibliographies cover specific time periods, such as Historiography in the Revolution: A bibliography of Cuban Scholarship, 1959-1979, by Louis A. Pérez, Jr. (New York, 1982). Yet another, by Ernestina Grimadi Pérez, is dedicated to publications by Soviet nationals in Cuba: Biblioteca de autores soviéticos: libros y folletos publicados en Cuba (1959-1977) (Habana, 1977).

Many works have been written about the intellectual influence and publishing output of Spanish exiles in Mexico, especially as a consequence of the Spanish Civil War. This volume focuses on the neglected Spanish presence in Cuba. Although studies of individual Spaniards’ works in Cuba—e.g., Juan Ramón Jiménez, María Zambrano—exist, this is the first attempt to document the totality of Spanish contributions to Cuban letters.

This is a well-produced and thoroughly compiled volume consisting of several sections. The bulk of the study lists some 750 individual Spaniards who resided and published in Cuba during this time period. Each entry includes place and date of birth, profession, years in Cuba, and a list of publications. Sources are cited at the end of each entry. Another section analyzes the work of Spanish visitors to Cuba who had an impact on Cuban literature, including many well-known Spanish writers such as María Teresa León, Gonzalo Torrente Ballester and Ramón del Valle Inclán. A third section lists periodical publications initiated by Spanish exiles. It is preceded by a useful introductory essay, in which Domingo discusses the typology of these periodicals as they relate to their dates of publication: for example, Republican and Falangist titles appeared at the time of the Spanish Civil War (Nosotros, España republicana, and Arriba España!). During the length of the 20th century, journals devoted to specific Spanish regions or written in regional languages such as Catalan and Galician were published in Cuba. Entries for each periodical title include names of directors, editors, frequent collaborators, periodicity, and notes about the importance of each to Cuban letters.

Domingo refers to the future publication of a second volume of this work, which is to be a general study of the works analyzed in this Dictionary. As of mid-2006, this volume had not yet appeared; however, the “partial results of much more extensive research” have appeared in his Españoles en Cuba en el siglo XX (2004) from the same publisher. This is an important work for collections that include either Cuban or Spanish history or literature, both for the wealth of bibliographical information it provides as well as for its contribution to Cuban and Spanish cultural history.

Ennius in der Forschung des 20. Jahrhunderts: eine kommentierte Bibliographie für 1900-1999 mit systematischen Hinweisen nebst einer Kurzdarstellung des Q. Ennius (239-169 v. Chr.) [Ennius in 20th-Century Research: An Annotated Bibliography for 1900-1999, with Systematic References and a Short Portrayal of Q. Ennius (239-269 B.C.)]. Werner Suerbaum. Hildesheim [et al.]: Olms, 2003. 280 p. 22 cm. (Bibliographien zur klassischen Philologie, 1). ISBN 3-487-11866-1: EUR 44.80 [04-1-169]

In this bibliography all the elements come together in a harmonious whole. The compiler, emeritus professor of Classical Philology in Munich, has also produced standard bibliographies of Tacitus and Virgil, and is the editor of volume 1 of the new Handbuch der lateinischen Literatur der Antike [Handbook of the Latin Literature of Antiquity] (München, 2002).

In an article in the Neue Pauly encyclopedia, Suerbaum called Quintus Ennius “the most significant and versatile of pre-classical Latin authors.” For this bibliography he has thoroughly investigated a century’s worth of research and has brought together around 1,200 items with brief annotations. A selection of important titles published before 1900 is included, as well. In addition to secondary literature, including biographies and reception studies, editions of Ennius’ works are noted, as are references to reviews. The chronologically arranged bibliography is followed by a series of in-depth indexes, as well as a reprint of Suerbaum’s article on Ennius from the Neue Pauly. Journal abbreviations follow those of L’Année Philologique, but there is no list of abbreviations in this volume.

This work marks the beginning of a new series from Olms, Bibliographien zur Klassischen Philologie. If the series maintains the high standards set by this first volume, one hopes that further volumes will follow quickly. [sh/baw]

Die Überlieferung der antiken Literatur im Buchdruck des 15. Jahrhunderts [The Transmission of the Literature of Antiquity in 15th-Century Printing]. Otto Mazal. 4 vols. Stuttgart: Hiersemann, 2003. x, 334, v, 337-540, vi, 541-825, vi, 829-1,114 p. ill. 25 cm. (Bibliothek des Buchwesens, 14). ISBN 3-7772-0317-3 (set); ISBN 3-7772-0318-1 (vol. 1): EUR 148; ISBN 3-7772-0320-3 (vol. 2): EUR 139; ISBN 3-7772-0321-1 (vol. 3): EUR 148; 3-7772-0323-8 (vol. 4): EUR 148 [04-2-462]

I padri sotto il torchio: le edizioni dell’antichità cristiana nei secoli XV-XVI: atti del convegno di studi, Certosa del Galluzzo, Firenze, 25-26 giugno 1999 [Printing the Fathers of the Church: Editions of Christian Antiquity in the 15th-16th Centuries: Proceedings of the Conference, Certosa del Galluzzo, Florence, 25-26 June, 1999]. Ed. Mariarosa Cortesi. Tavarnuzze: SISMEL-Edizioni del Galluzzo, 2002. vi, 331 p. 25 cm. (Millennio medievale, 35; Atti di convegni, 10). ISBN 88-8450-028-1: EUR 65 [04-2-463]

Mazal’s work treats the history of the literature of antiquity in the transitional period between manuscripts and printed books, providing a welcome overview of text transmission, philological activity of early humanism, and the spread of printed texts in the era of incunabula. Classical Greek and Latin literature and the Jewish and Christian literature of antiquity are represented. Short introductions to individual authors precede in-depth information on manuscript transmission and printing history. References to incunabula in standard reference works are prevalent, but philological assessment of individual editions is lacking. The selective bibliography is valuable, but does not contain imprints and editions more recent than the latter part of the 1990s. Indexes of persons, works, and places are thorough only with regard to printing locations; an index of manuscripts is missed. These failings would be more forgivable were it not for the 600-Euro price; one expects more from Hiersemann. Yet despite some content-related and formal defects, this comprehensive work will remain an indispensable addition to humanistic reference collections.

The conference addresses (in Italian and French) in I padri sotto il torchio focus on the edition and printing history (with emphasis on the 16th century) of authors and texts from Christian antiquity: Tertullian, Eucherius of Lyon, Hieronymus, and others. With regard to the history of the translation of patristic texts into Latin or vernacular languages, cutting-edge research is presented. The contributions of Salvatore Pricocco and Paolo Viti on the incunabula period are significant and provide a welcome complement to Mazal’s treatment. [ch/rlk]

Nikodemus Frischlin (1547-1590); Bibliographie. Thomas Wilhelmi and Friedrich Seck, with the collaboration of Matthias Irion. Leinfelden-Echterdingen: DRW-Verlag, 2004. 191 p. ill. 25 cm. (Tübinger Bausteine zur Landesgeschichte, 4). ISBN 3-87181-704-X: EUR 15.80 [04-2-464]

This bibliography lists not only early printed books but also modern secondary literature on the combative and controversial Swabian humanist and Tübingen professor Nikodemus Frischlin. (His birthplace, Balingen, helped finance the compilation and printing of this volume.) The book begins with a short introduction and a synopsis of Frischlin’s life and works. The bibliography lists 253 printed editions of his Latin and German works from the years 1565-1764 and 130 additional books to which Frischlin contributed texts. There are 15 scholarly editions from the 19th and 20th centuries. For all early printed books, references to the most important catalogs and libraries that hold them are included. Secondary literature on Frischlin comprises 269 titles, dating from 1581 to 2004. Literature deemed to be “without scholarly value,” such as newspaper articles and encyclopedia entries, is omitted. The indexes list persons, titles of Frischlin’s works, printers and publishers (by place), and more than 300 libraries and archives. Those that hold manuscript materials are marked with an asterisk, but no information on the extent and content of the manuscripts is given. This does not detract from the compilers’ achievement; their listing of the printed material provides a broad and solid basis for future research on Frischlin. [ch/gh]

Lexikon arabischer Autoren des 19. und 20. Jahrhunderts [Encyclopedia of Arab Authors of the 19th and 20th Centuries]. Khalid Al-Maaly and Mona Naggar. Heidelberg: Palmyra-Verlag, 2004. 321 p. 22 cm. ISBN 3-930378-55-8: EUR 24.90 [04-2-465]

The traditional Frankfurt Book Fair practice of each year inviting a different country or group of countries to present its literature to the German—and also the international— reading audience has regularly stimulated the publication of useful reference works. For the 2004 Fair, in which the Arab nations were the focal point, the Palmyra publishing house, whose specialty is works on the Arab world and particularly on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, brought out this encyclopedia covering “about 400 of the most significant Arab authors, both men and women, of the 19th and 20th centuries.” Included are those who write exclusively in Arabic as well as those who also publish in other languages, mainly French, English, and German. The generally brief entries contain information on the author’s life and works, often followed by a tribute, and completed by a list of “Important Works” with brief bibliographical information and a list of “German Translations.” No information on secondary literature is included. A two-page bibliography at the end of the volume includes literary histories, author lexicons, and other reference works. There is an author index (including a notation of the author’s homeland) and a list of authors by country; of the 17 countries included, Egypt leads Iraq and Lebanon in the number of authors, with Sudan bringing up the rear with only three. A brief “Introduction to the History of Arab Literature of the 19th and 20th Centuries” by Tübingen Professor for Arab and Islamic Studies Wiebke Walther is included in an appendix. This is a useful author encyclopedia for a language area that is underrepresented in the usual literature lexicons. [sh/nb]

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