It was the first book I read by Colm Tóibín and it won't surely be the last as I fell in love with his style of writing.
I requested this book because Thomas Mann is one of my favorite writers and was in love with his books since i read Mario and the Magician long time ago.
Mann is a complex writer and the book talks about his family and his personal story. His personal story is quite tragic and he had to face the horror of German XX centuries and his familiar drama. He wasn't a saint but he was a hell of a great writer describing the decline of European bourgeoisie.
I loved how Tóibín follows him and his family since his early years in Lubeck, his expectations and his struggle with his homosexuality.
It's a fascinating and well researched story of a man, an historical period. I think you can read it as a novel or as homage to Mann.
It's not an easy or fast read, it analyses Thomas mind and each event is also a great descriptions of the setting and the people around Mann.
I loved it and I think I will read the other books by this author.
Highly recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine

There's something about writers writing about writers that fails to spark. Slightly more successful than writers writing about composers, but it's a close call.

The Magician is a novelisation of the life of Thomas Mann. I suspect that Thomas was a Mann of his times - famous in Weimar Germany, awarded by the Nobel Committee, feted in America during the war, and his works were apparently purchased in such quantity to make him hugely rich. He rubs shoulders with the great and the good; on the Rooseveldts' guest list, feuding with composers, and touted as a future President of a post-war Germany. And for all that, he seems to live on in name only. I'm not sure that anyone (at least in the anglophone world) still reads his works.

So we have a story of the writer set against a backdrop of world politics. The plight of the family - a large family with Jewish connections and more than the standard 10% quota of homosexuality - trying to maintain their ruling class entitlement as the order crumbles around them. The writing flows well, but the events are more interesting than its witnesses. Mann himself is portrayed as a fence-sitter, unwilling to condemn Naziism for fear of personal reprisals while seeking sanctuary overseas. But this is perhaps an unfair portrayal. Mann was actually quite vocal in his condemnation of fascism and (I understand) quite overt in his themes of homosexuality in his writing. This, with the consequence of making him a target of the McCarthyites. But this really feels glossed over in favour of a conveyor belt of little dramas brought by his many children, siblings and acquaintances.

The pacing of The Magician is odd. The pacing is led by family events, leaving matters like the war to slip by almost unnoticed while other world events that coincided with family drama are unfolded very slowly over many pages. That might have felt more natural if Thomas Mann had been portrayed as a more swash-buckling character but as it was, it felt as though we were focusing somewhat on the side-show.

Colm Toibin has a gentle narrative style, and nothing jars. At a sentence level this makes for a pleasant read. I just can't help feeling that the style lends itself more to ordinary folk (and judges) on the east coast of Ireland, exploring their feelings, rather than following major historical figures and world events. I preferred this to The Master, but how I'd like to go back to the The Blackwater Lightship.

This literary epic follows the life of Thomas Mann the famous German writer from childhood to his dying days.
he is born into a middle class family in the Hanseatic town of Lubeck. His comfortable home contrasts with the spartan school which he and his brother, Heinrich, attend. This town and school don't feed his imagination- the school windows are covered to prevent idle daydreaming. However both brothers harbour literary ambitions and this intensifies a sibling rivalry. In Lubeck Thomas also starts to explore his sexuality.

A family death means a move to Bavaria and Munich with its more Bohemian atmosphere. Amongst the writers, poets and activists he meets the charismatic siblings Klaus and Katia who come from a rich non practicing Jewish family. They have an almost twin-like telepathy. Despite his homosexuality they marry and Katia then ensures that his writing processs not disturbed by anyone including his six children.

We then follow the family to various locations as they are swept up by the tides of interwar history and later the post war period.

Toibin explores much about identity in this novel. One identity is that of national identity which became such an issue during these years. What does being German mean? What is Germany? Here Mann's struggles to come to terms with his nationality are contrasted with those of his brother early in the book and then his two oldest children, Erika and Klaus who are political activists and speak out strongly against Nazism. There is a lot of ambivalence for Mann in what he should do/ not do in this context.. Later he struggles with how can a post war Germany be built? Is there a collective responsibility for the Holocaust? I

Mann's sexual identity also shows "ambivalence". He is retracted throughout his life to boys/men . Is it just the repression and persecution of the time that leads him to marriage ? His eldest children once again act as a contrast.

Then there is his identity as a writer and the whole writing process. Later in the book he contrasts writing with music and its more direct power. It's intriguing to see where Toibin thinks his inspiration for his various novels comes from and how he develops these ideas in his books.

His fame as a writer then leads him to further identity issues in his public versus private persona. Is he really a spokesperson for the whole of Germany? If so which Germany? What will he choose to do when he has a choice between a politically momentous reading and a family funeral?

There is a lot that seems opaque about Mann. He doesn't seem to have strong feelings and seems strangely removed . Is this because Toibin is indicating that it is what a writer writes that is important not linking his life biographically to a text? Why doesn't he seem to be deeply affected by the various suicides and sufferings of family members?

Katia is another intriguing character. After a stay in a Sanatorium she seems to retreat into the background, but what is really going on for her? Is her "retreat" because we are seeing through Thomas's eyes ?

The title seems to encapsulate some of the ambiguities
"The Magician comes in many guises," Elisabeth said.
In the novel the nickname arises when he performs magic trick for the children when Katia is away. However the Magician is traditionally wise, clever and can take many guises just like the chameleon like Mann..

There are some wonderful set pieces. Alma Mahler in particular is horrendously fascinating. Erika has an energy that fizzes on the page.

I haven't read any Thomas Mann novels myself but this might inspire me to do just that.

Toibin's novel is a masterpiece. His prose is simple but lucid and his exploration of themes both nuanced and ambitious in scope.

Okay, let me start off by saying, I am a massive Colm Toibin fan. His writing is phenomenal and this book is no different. Colm has a way that his words capture the reader's imagination. He is creative and his storytelling is on the next level. That being said, I found myself not being fully engrossed in this book. (Shocking, I know!). Don't get me wrong, I really enjoyed this book and the approach in which Toibin took, it just didn't have the same impact on me as Toibin's previous books.

I would recommend this book to anyone who enjoys historical fiction.

Thank you to the author, Netgalley, @Penguinukbooks and @Vikingbooksuk for a copy of this e-arc in exchange for an honest review.

This book is very well written but it is quite a long read. Once you get into it, it is a lovely read. Book is a fictional account about the life of author Thomas Mann 1875-1955. The author has done great research which you can tell. Would recommend.

The Magician" by Colm Tóibín is a fictional portrayal of German author Thomas Mann covering a history from pre-war Germany in the 1890's through post-cold war America. It is a fascinating insight into Mann and his colorful family-- particularly when they were forced to witness the Nazi takeover and had to abandon their home. Politics would also follow them to America after the war as they were subjected to the wave of anti-Communism.

This book is not at all what I expected. It turns out to be fiction based on some fact.
It’s wordy, dull, with a thoroughly dislikeable central character, and some abhorrent subject matter. This was a DNF for me.
My thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for my advance copy of this book.

This is an epic overview of Germany through the man - Thomas Mann- who always seems slightly on the edge of the very country to which he was born.
I am familiar with Mann's 'Death In Venice' a sometimes sexually disturbing tale and which Toibin uses as part of Mann's own concerns about his sexuality. He is very sexual on the page yet Mann appeared to lead a very 'normal' life with a wife and many children.
I was expecting more depth into Mann's writing process but really the words are related to his family and life experiences which are described often in very detailed passages. It was only looking at photographs of Mann and his family - particularly his older brother Henrich with whom he had an ongoing sibling rivalry as a fellow writer - that I got a feel for the person.
This is an intellectual read reflecting Mann's deep thoughts and of course his momentous book 'The Magic Mountain' (which I feel I must now read) and how his work led to him receiving the Nobel Prize for Literature.
There is a subtle but growing undercurrent of the growth of fascism and how even his own children at many a conversational dinner table felt opposing views about Germany's future.
Mann himself never really confronted his homosexuality unlike Toibin. Perhaps that is reflected in the way he wrote. Unlike Toibin, whose many other novels I have loved, this one at times felt a little stuck for emotional depth with the main characters.
Lots to learn. Great literary writing. But like Mann himself perhaps a little too much thinking and not revealing.

Well written novel / biography of the early 20th Century author Thomas Mann. The book is a detailed journey through the troubled author's life. It is clearly well researched but unfortunately I found it rather overlong and heavy-going.

I wasn't sure if I was going to like this so I'm very glad that I did. This novel tells the story of writer and Nobel Prize winner Thomas Mann, from his time in Austria to that in America, including escaping the Nazis and adjusting to life on a different continent. The novel was filled with luxurious detail and covered a long period well. I'm glad it justified its length and didn't feel rushed. A great novel, would recommend.

This fictionalised biography tells the life story of the author Thomas Mann. It spans both world wars, and the several migrations across the Atlantic and back. At times I found it too introspective and for me it would have been better to be a shorter, less detailed book. I did not find any of the characters particularly likeable.

I enjoyed reading The Magician, Colm Toibin writes very well and keeps the reader's interest throughout this tale which draws you in to the world of Thomas Mann.

As someone who is a big fan of Colm Tóibín's writing, I have to say that I was very excited for this book, but also nervous, as I knew nothing about Thomas Mann.

However, what Tóibín does here to introduce you to the writer, his character and his history was nothing short of masterful.

Across the sweeping 500 pages of this beautiful novel, Tóibín delicately paints a picture of a changing world, and changing Germany, and how that manifests itself in Thomas Mann's writing.

Early on in the book, it becomes apparent that Tóibín deeply admires and respects Thomas Mann, but is still able to occupy a narrative space that is both inside Mann's head and watching him from the outside. As a result, we as the readers are both given an insight into the inner workings of a complex man, and also never made to feel like we are cold observers.

This book is grand in scale- we watch two world wars sweep by, and watch how Germany, just like its symbol and hero, grows, divides and re-forms.

The scenes where we observe Mann try to fight Nazism with speeches and books would feel trite in the hands of a lesser author. But Tóibín is somehow able to pull this off in a way that does not feel cliched- instead, Mann is presented as a sympathetic character, lost and powerless as he navigates all he has ever known crumbling in front of him as Hitler rises to power.

The scenes where Mann looks back on his home country from a distance are incredibly moving, and the end passage of the book, as we watch some of the final moments of Mann's life, had me welling up, so profoundly involved with Mann's life we are after 500 pages.

There is also something deeply special about Tóibín, a gay writer, writing about another gay writer. There is a deep understanding between the two men across history, and Tóibín's ability to capture queer yearning, shame and discovery is remarkable- these passages were stunning, and dealt with so deftly and generously.

I did not expect to be as moved by this book as I was, but it will linger with me for a long while, and, as I suspect was Tóibín's secondary goal, I now want to read Thomas Mann's novels myself.

I received an advanced copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

The Magician by Colm Toibin is a fictional biography of German writer Thomas Mann, a man whose life was filled with contradictions. I knew little about the man before picking up this book, but was sure that the quality of Toibin's writing would make for an enjoyable experience.. I was not wrong about the quality of the writing, the author is a master of characterisation and scene setting , and from that perspective the book was a treat. The storytelling is excellent, and Mann's life encompasses an era of vast political and social change in both Europe and later in the USA. However Mann himself is such an unlikeable character that he diluted my enjoyment of the book as a whole.
I read and reviewed an ARC courtesy of NetGalley and the publisher, all opinions are my own.

I was given this ARC by NetGalley in return for a review.
This book was a mammoth read about an author I knew nothing about. Toibin has clearly researched Thomas Mann so well he didn’t want to leave out one detail, this could make some sections laborious. It also meant that although I felt I understood something about Thomas’s six children I didn’t feel like I ‘knew’ him until the end of the book. The children had fascinating lives in their own rights but he took a back seat.
It’s a different take on war time Germany and shows what famous authors, bisexuals and those with a bohemian lifestyle needed to do when Hitler came to power a second time. I’ve never given thought to the dilemma of whether famous Germans should return to a post war Germany so this was thought provoking.
In summary I feel like I’ve learned a great about a fascinating family but I’d have liked to understand him better and removing some of the detail may have made this an easier read.

An epic telling of the life of Thomas Mann, his family, and the inspiration for his works - all set against the tumultuous period from the late 1800s in Germany to 1950s America and Switzerland. Toibin takes a deep dive - this is richly researched and feels at times like an intensely descriptive biography, one that takes a focus on Mann’s deepest emotional desires. I’ve seen a few suggestions that there could be an inappropriate focus on Mann’s desire of youth; I didn’t feel this was the case personally and it certainly wasn’t explicit.

The sheer depth of detail can at times overwhelm - a passing acquaintance with musicians and authors of the period, in particular Schoenberg, would be an advantage I suspect. Wikipedia is handy at times!

The family relationships are the key strength - so many objectionable people I came to feel deeply about.

A fictional account of the life of the author Thomas Mann that read like a biography giving a very clear picture of Mann and his family. Mann was called The Magician by his family and this book covers the majority of Mann’s life.

Over the years I have read two or three of Colm Toibin’s books and, I must admit, that I have sometimes admired, but rarely been gripped by them. I think his style is often fairly dry, but somehow this suited this fictional biography (which is the only way I can describe this book) of Thomas Mann.

I cannot in any way claim to be knowledgeable about Thomas Mann, although “The Magic Mountain,” is definitely in my top ten favourite books and is a novel that I have returned to more than once. I think my lack of specific knowledge was a positive thing here, though, as I was fascinated to learn about this author, whose work has remained popular when, as it is shown in this novel, his brother – Heinrich – who had early success, started out looking to overshadow his younger sibling.

There is much about siblings in, “The Magician.” Heinrich, Thomas, siters Lula and Carla, and younger brother Victor, make a family group in conventional Lubeck, where the Mann’s grew up, with their hard-working father, and lively, Brazilian father. Then there is Thomas Mann’s wife, Katia, whose twin, Klaus, often mirrors the behaviour of Thomas and Katia’s eldest son, named for his uncle. The two eldest of their children, Klaus and Erika are flamboyant and self-contained, and, in much the same way that Thomas and his own siblings created alliances, his six children also have unions, affiliations and interrelations.

As well as the central theme of family, there is also much about Thomas Mann’s sexuality, his rather touching entrancement of various young men. This is very much an open secret, with his wife and daughter, at one point, conspiring to arrange for a young waiter that the author found attractive, to serve him lunch, alone on a terrace. This is very much a secret life, which Mann hugs tight to himself, remembering often innocuous encounters and recalling them in detail. He is also not averse to using his life for his work and there is much about what inspired his great works. I can see this book already has mixed reviews, but I absolutely loved it and am sorry that I have finished it. Hopefully, it will also lead readers to discover Thomas Mann’s work, if they have not already done so. I received a copy of this book from the publisher, via NetGalley, for review, but will certainly buy a copy on publication.

Having known nothing of Thomas Mann before reading this book, I focused more on it being fiction than on biography, as there are all already plenty of biographical accounts of Mann’s life. As a work of fiction, this is a wonderfully written and very engaging book, even if the man himself is not particularly appealing. As a story it explores big issues of war, family, loyalty, nationality, sexuality, and many other themes, keeping the reader engrossed in the lives of the main characters. It is disturbing to think that the Mann family were ostracised in Second World War Germany for putting their own lives first and escaping from Hitler’s clutches, but as a work of fiction I think this book is superb, if just a little long and slow moving at times.

I didn't know much about Thomas Mann's life before reading this novel on the subject. Not a very likeable man! Interesting to read about his relationship with his wife and family and their acceptance of his homosexuality at a time when this was illegal. The most readable section was the World War II part.