Recently Unearthed Telegrams Sent by Franz Kafka
Unable to attend tonight’s reading stop visit in massive labyrinthine castle lasting longer than expected stop do not wait for me stop will contact you once out of this hellhole stop
My probationary year at court is complete stop firm handshake from Dr. Marschner stop looking forward to working with him stop hope to become a model employee stop
Debilitating migraine thanks to dreadful argument with my father stop had to take to the bed stop won’t be able to make it to your wedding stop gift will arrive with Felix stop
On a month-long voyage to Amerika stop cannot assist with your insurance claim regarding your accident stop if urgent contact my supervisor Eugen Pfohl stop
Pinned against the wall of my bedroom by huge insect stop unable to get to the theater on time stop go inside and watch the play regardless stop don’t let it bug you that I’m not there stop
Stuck at bridal shop with Felice stop she’s determined to try on wedding gowns stop it’s a slippery slope stop not to mention bridal shops bring out the worst in me stop
On a long train ride to a penal colony to gather materials for a story stop exact location will be revealed upon arrival stop sleeping arrangements are appalling stop
Devoured all of Goethe’s works in the last few months stop one can only dream to join his rank in the canon of world literature stop how foolish of me to even entertain such fancy ideas stop
Friend’s son in nearby village needs help with huge wound stop send country doctor stop must use strong horses for the journey stop the forecast calls for freezing overnight temperatures stop
On my way to observe a hunger artist stop what a crazy idea stop it should be interesting stop will be there for a while stop have dinner without me stop
Dostoyevsky is a beast stop you must read Brothers Karamazov stat stop you will love it stop
Purchased photographs of the hunger artist stop will mail them to you soon stop what theatrical fanfare stop you wonder how long he will go on stop
Switched my major from chemistry to law stop slightest whiff of chemistry lab made me nauseous stop to say nothing of the professor who was a pompous ass stop
Berlin is a fantastic and lively city stop Dora introduced me to the Talmud stop it bores me to death but trying my best to make her happy stop
Spent entire day staring at the Vltava River stop my head feels empty stop writer’s block is no joke stop the toll collector’s life is more exciting than mine stop
Constant ringing from neighbor’s flat is driving me insane stop whoever invented the telephone needs to be locked up stop preferably with a telephone ringing next to their head stop
My insomnia is killing me stop nasty cough also keeps me up at night stop terrible thoughts are tormenting me stop please buy me more paper and ink stop
Dr. Hoffmann runs a tight ship at his sanatorium stop nurses are very attentive stop my chest pain is unbearable stop at times everything seems hopeless stop
Professor Heinrich Neumann visited me today during his rounds stop thanks for sending him stop such a gloomy fellow stop next time send someone more cheerful stop
In worst case scenario burn all my writings you cunning old devil stop no one will want to read it anyway stop trust me on this one stop
- About the Author
- Latest Posts
Ági Bori originally hails from Hungary, and she has lived in the United States for more than thirty years. A decade ago, she decided to try her hand at translating and discovered she loved it. She is a fierce advocate for bringing more translated books to American readers. In addition to translating between Hungarian and English, her favorite avocation is reading Russian short stories in their native language. Her translations and writings are available or forthcoming in 3:AM, Apofenie, Asymptote, The Baffler, B O D Y, the Forward, Hopscotch Translation, Hungarian Literature Online, the Los Angeles Review, Litro Magazine, MAYDAY, Northwest Review, Points in Case, The Rumpus, Tablet, Trafika Europe, and elsewhere. She is a translation editor at the Los Angeles Review.
