
Engelhart’s world is forged in the smoky kitchens and noisy taverns of a modest town, where a curious boy first discovers the allure of flame while his mother watches from an open window. His early experiments with matches and a makeshift playhouse ignite both wonder and trouble, drawing the scorn of adults and the occasional bruising hand. The daily rhythm of noisy revelry, brawls, and the grim ritual of a weekly pig slaughter leaves a lingering darkness in his young mind, shaping a vivid, sometimes unsettling imagination.
When his parents relocate to a small riverside town for a family wedding, Engelhart is thrust into an old monastery‑turned‑hotel, sharing a cramped chamber with three distant cousins. The youngest, Esmee, captures his attention with a silent, penetrating stare that sparks a mixture of jealousy and bravado. As the wedding proceeds and the children wander the garden, Engelhart’s restless spirit begins to weave stories and boasts, hinting at the inner conflicts that will guide his path forward.
Language
de
Duration
~7 hours (452K characters)
Publisher of text edition
Project Gutenberg
Credits
Produced by Markus Brenner and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net
Release date
2008-08-23
Rights
Public domain in the USA.
Subjects

1873–1934
Known for psychological novels that explored identity, conscience, and the pressures of society, this German writer became one of the most widely read authors of his time. His best-known book, "Caspar Hauser or The Inertia of the Heart," helped secure his place in early 20th-century European literature.
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