April 20, 2011:I bought this book in 1979 and read it sometime in the early 80's.It's only a couple of hundred pages, so when Praj asked me to review it, I thought, hey, why not re-read it (even though I very rarely re-read books).April 22, 2011:Re-reading this novel has been a total revelation.Firstly, I had previously rated it four stars from memory. Now I have upgraded it to five stars.It's not just good, it's great, one of the best books I've read.Secondly, I haven't seen the Volker Schlondo [...]

And now here at last is a real book for grown-ups. Intelligent and utterly unsentimental, Homo Faber would, I feel, have been wasted on me if I'd read it ten years ago; now it strikes me as extraordinary. (This is unlike most novels, which, if not actually aimed at people in their late teens and early twenties, seem to resonate most strongly with that intense and exciting age group.)As it happens, Walter Faber, the central character of this novel, does not read novels at all. He can't see the po [...]

Is everything in life a coincidence, or are things predestined for us? How much do the decisions that we make in life influence the outcome?, even down to the smallest of details?. For globe-trotting Walter Faber this is a conflict that is never really resolved, through the misadventures of a strange semi mid-life crisis, Frisch writes a poignant and sometimes shocking novel as Faber struggles to maintain his previously unwavering belief in technology, whilst human connections both past and pres [...]

Warning: contains major spoilers for Sophie's WorldManfred, my inner German child, is looking even smugger and more annoying than usual. "I'm not a child any more," he informs me. "I'm grown up. I read Max Frisch's Homo Faber.""You are a child, Manfred," I sigh. "You're only three.""Three and a half," says Manfred with a little less confidence."Three and a half if you like," I agree. "And you didn't understand that book. It was too difficult for you.""Did so," says Manfred."Okay, Manfred," I say [...]

What a difference a reread makes. Now I want to seize everybody in turn by the lapels and say 'read this book and then read it again!'.Unusually I know when I had the book for the first time, the Easter of 1995, there's an inscription in my Mother's handwriting on a flyleaf with that date. Now I've read it again, but also read it for the first time. You can't read the same book twice since you never can be the same reader.The narrator doesn't see things that way. He is told: "technology.e knack [...]

I had never heard of this book, or of its author, but boy am I glad I decided to buy it on a whim. It is a work that deserves to stand with Camus and Sartre in its penetration of the modern condition; an understanding of which is in each case elucidated through the perspective of a misanthrope. The protagonist, Faber, is an engineer, who is characterised by certain stereotypically male traits: he lacks empathy, and is logical and analytical to the point of inhumanity. He treats significant event [...]

A Swiss Heart of DarknessAn engineer with an engineering outlook on life, the eponymous Homo (Walter) Faber believes in the randomness of existence. But he fails to recognise that such randomness is equivalent to a kind of cosmic spontaneity. And that such spontaneity implies some sort of spirit. He insists on the absolute disjunction between spirit and matter. The former is emotional, sentimental and soft. The latter is masculine and what constitutes reality, what can be measured, assembled and [...]

“Nothing is harder than to accept oneself." - Max Frisch.Walter Faber is a paradigm of collective identity v/s self-identity, rationality v/s irrationality and providence v/s concurrence; counter positioning free will. You cannot find yourself anywhere except in yourself. Frisch portrays the contradictory worlds of methodical reasonableness and the quandary of being a mortal. Walter believes in what he nurtures. As a technologist working for UNESCO, he lives in the present and connects with th [...]

This book is required reading in many schools in Germany. Crazy idea. What are the “children” supposed to get out of it? And so are the ratings and reviews (here and elsewhere) by the young ones. Unfavorable. I have, I believe, seen the film one time. But have forgotten all about it.Homo Faber is Walter Faber. Engineer. Lives by the motto “für einen Ingenör ist nichts zu schwör”. Constructs his world around technology. Writes letters in the desert after an emergency landing on a typew [...]

oh my god I am so glad to be done with this tortuous book. I appreciate the other reviewers who point out the reasons for this story's existence. It is very well-written and I suppose it serves to remind us not to live like robots, to have feelings. Fortunately I don't live like a robot and I already have many feelings, thank you very much, so for me reading this was like spending hours and hours with a depressed and depressing very sad old man who is telling me all his regrets without even real [...]

On the surface a straightforward story, simple and resembling a parable; but like a parable capable of many interpretations and readable on more than one level. Walter faber is a rational man who believes in technology, a creature of habit. A series of events disrupt his settled life. A plane crash, a chance meeting with the brother of an old friend, a visit to the friend in central america, whose body they discover at his home. Then there ia a boat journey across the Atlantic. Faber, a middle a [...]

A series of number cropping up everywhere you look ("a lotto winning combination"). A girl (or a boy) you meet, accidentally, in several unlikely places ("we are meant for each other"). A sudden inclement weather on a scheduled date for a job interview ("a better job is waiting for me elsewhere"). Coincidences, synchronicity--people read meanings from them, even the atheists or those who believe in the pure randomness of the world.An author who can create a world, and horrify you with it (e.g El [...]

I can't believe this book is under the category "unpopular books"!!! this is one of books that have influenced me the most. The story of this man destined to become a robot, ignoring his emotions, trying to avoid suffering and depending always on logic and system, is a story of people in the 20th century. What we know now about emotional intelligence is what Max Faber lacks. If someone is interested in the depths and miseries of the human soul, he should read this book. Morover the language is s [...]

A novel of slowing down and being left behind by the world and technology, and the imprisonment that that world might bring.

i truly hate this book! i had to read it in class once and create a frikking presentation. my mood drops several degrees when only thinking about this crappy book!HIGHLY NOT RECOMMENDED

How moving How, shockinglyrprisingly so

In trying to make sense of Homo Faber, I feel as ill-equipped to do so as the other reviews lead me to believe Walter Faber as he exists at the start of the novel would be if you asked him to explain the meaning of life and human existence. He'd go:"Umm, to assemble propellers?", right?So I'm led to believe. But why is that? Did I miss the part where Frisch explains why his cold, isolated engineer, who doesn't want to be chattered at by some stranger on his long-haul flight (the utter git), ende [...]

I’m not going to lie. Homo Faber was a difficult story to read. We meet a restless and unfeeling man called Walter Faber, who understands the world only through reason and technology. At the beginning of the novel, Faber travels to South America, but the plane crashes in the Mexican desert. Despite being stranded in the desert for several days, Faber does not lose his temper and fixates his mind on playing chess to pass the time. By chance, he learns that a fellow passenger is the brother of h [...]

Една от книгите, които ме е формирала като човек. Оттам и петте звезди. Любимата ми реплика за тежки състояния, "Не плача. Просто ми се иска да ме няма." е от "Хомо Фабер". Но книгата не е тежка. Не е тъжна, не е весела. Тя е полиедърна, многогранна, дълбока и дълбаеща. Една от книги� [...]

Η ροή και το ύφος της αφήγησης συμβαδίζει σε όλη την έκταση του βιβλίου με τον τρόπο σκέψης και την αντιμετώπιση του κόσμου μέσα από τη ματιά του πρωταγωνιστή. Ο Φάμπερ διαγράφει μια πορεία από τον ορθολογισμό και την επίπεδη αντίληψη των πραγμάτων έως τον έντονο συναισθημ� [...]

A friend of mine, originally from Lichtenstein, read my first book and then immediately suggested that I read Max Frisch's "Homo Faber". He described it as a standard lit class novel in German language high schools throughout Europe, and I cringed with the notion that it would be boring as hell. When he told me that it was from one of the most famous Swiss authors and that it would be interesting to read his 1950's take on Switzerland, México and the US (all places I've lived) as well as some o [...]

2 kere 2'nin 4 ettiği bir dünyada yaşarken bir anda geçmişi ile yüzleşmek durumunda kalan Mr. Faber'in hikayesi Homo Faber. Kimi zaman ne yaptığı anlaşılmıyor, kimi zaman ise kendi mantığına göre en iyisini yapıyor. Garip bir karakter, 'teknik adam' tabiri üzerine cuk oturuyor. Öte yandan Amerikan toplumu ve Amerikanvari yaşam, kürtaj, yalnızlaşma gibi konulardaki düşünceleriyle potansiyel bir sosyolog.Ama karakter hakkında öyle bir sıkıntı var ki, kitap bittiğin [...]

“There aren't any prehistoric monsters any more. Why should I imagine them? I'm sorry, but I don't see any stone angels either; nor demons; I see what I see – the usual shapes due to erosion and also my long shadow on the sand, but no ghosts.”Walter Faber is a pragmatist and he lives as if he is blown by the wind – he is a ship without an anchor and there is no haven for him in the sea of life and there is no place he can call his own. And in this endless roaming and his genuflection bef [...]

I had to read this for school and it was better than all the other books I've read for school. I actually enjoyed it and it was really quick and easy to read.

Homo Faber oder der Anti-Ödipus in der modernen Welt — Versuch einer subjektiven Interpretation des Gefallens *enthält Spoiler*Rezensionen und Anmerkungen zu Homo Faber gibt es zuhauf, und die Meinung zu dem Werk ist je nach Quelle größtenteils gut bis sehr gut. Nichtsdestotrotz stelle ich mir sehr oft die Frage, warum denn das Werk so besonders anspricht. Diese Frage soll im folgenden beantwortet werden, wobei das Ganze rein subjektiv zu verstehen.Homo Faber erzählt von einer vergangenen [...]

"Homo Faber" è un romanzo del 1957 scritto dallo scrittore e architetto svizzero Max Frisch.Walter Faber è un ingegnere svizzero che lavora per l'Unesco e trascorre la maggior parte del suo tempo in viaggio per i paesi sottosviluppati.Faber è un uomo razionale che vede ogni cosa come un'insieme di numeri e probabilità,crede che i sentimenti siano sinonimi di stanchezza ed è "affaticato" dagli esseri umani.Si potrebbe parlare molto del protagonista:del suo carattere cinico e insensibile o de [...]

Um Gottes Willen. Endlich geschafft. Meiner Meinung nach völlig überbewertet. Ein 200 Seiten langes blablablablablablabla. Wenn man die Namen Hanna und Sabeth aus dem Buch löschen würde, wär es wahrscheinlich nur 50 Seiten lang. Sabeth macht dies, Sabeth macht das, Hanna will weg aus Griechenland, Hanna will doch in Athen bleiben. Bla bla bla.

Tragedy=OedipusHomo=Faber

Era da molto che volevo leggere questo libro, ma non riuscivo mai a trovarne una copia tra l'usato. Poco tempo fa l'ho trovata e dopo tanto cercare non ho voluto rimandarne la lettura. Il libro mi è piaciuto anche se mi aspettavo molto di più perché ne avevo sentito parlare benissimo e quindi forse vivevo di aspettative. La traduzione italiana lascia un po' a desiderare perché c'erano delle espressioni che non avevano molto senso. Penso che in futuro lo leggerò anche in tedesco.La valutazio [...]

Unbelievably compelling; a spiraling of complexity and madness. Almost any description would be a spoiler, but in its simplest form: a very model of the modern (and detached) Swiss modernist is thrust into a whirlwind increasingly beyond his understanding. When epiphany arrives, death and insanity are its companions. "She thought it stupid of a woman to want to be understood by a man; the man (said Hanna) wants the woman to be a mystery, so that he can be inspired and excited by his own incompre [...]