new audiobook version of Hannah Arendt’s first postdoctoral project, an analytical biography of Rachel Varnhagen, is now available. Arendt carried around and tinkered with this manuscript for her decade-long exile in France in her twenties during the 1930s. Varnhagen was a late-eighteenth and early-nineteenth century German-Jewish writer. Rahel Varnhagen as a primary source, now available in engaging enough audio, offers an invaluable lens into Arendt’s early thoughts on Jewishness and womanhood at a time when they shaped her life, too.

This is a dnf book . I listened to 48% of the audiobook and just didn't connect with the book nor understand what was going on. I was hoping it would be more of a first person diary but it wasn't. I did like the narrator but just didn't feel nor learn anything from the book sorry about that. I wont be posting anywhere else as it is one person's point of view and I can't do it justice nor recommend.

4 stars

“The history of a bankruptcy, & a rebellious spirit”. This is how Arendt sums up Rahel’s legacy in the conclusion to her biography of a remarkable woman of the Enlightenment. This book touches on personal identity in many forms, & how Rahel was shaped by societal constraints (as a non-wealthy, Jewish woman in Prussia) but also rebelled against those constraints in pursuit of personal meaning & happiness. I really enjoyed this book.

[What I liked:]

•Beautifully written! You can just tell this was written by a philosopher. That said, the language isn’t hard to read, though it is elegant. Nor is it wordy or dense.

•Rahel is a very interesting person to read about. Though lacking formal education or “culture”, traditional beauty, & wealth, she impacted many important writers & political figures of her day with her personality & her mind. I truly enjoyed learning about her in this biography, which heavily excerpts her diaries & letters.

•I learned so much from this book. It is about Rahel, but in discussing her life Arendt addresses larger cultural & historical issues that impacted Rahel’s life, namely anti-semitism & the assimilation of German Jews. I also learned a lot about the cultural ideals of the Enlightenment era that influenced Rahel, such as her striving to be an individual, a person who meant something.


[What I didn’t like as much:]

•There are many passages (quotes) in French & Latin for which no English translation or paraphrase is provided. I don’t understand much of either language, & since I was listening to the audiobook version I didn’t even have the written text to try to type into Google translate. That was frustrating.

•This is a me problem, not a problem with the book, but despite the clarity of the writing I sometimes had a hard time fully grasping what the writer was trying to communicate. I think this is because much of the book is abstract, it’s about philosophical ideals of the Enlightenment & the Romantic era, & about Rahel’s inner life. I often had the sense that I was very close to fully grasping a concept that was being discussed only for it to slip through my fingers. I only wish I understood this book better so I could enjoy it that much more.

CW: infidelity, sexism, racism, anti-semitism, classism

[I received an ARC ebook copy from NetGalley in exchange for my honest review. Thank you for the book!]

I’m afraid this was just a mismatch between story and reader. I finished about 30% of this audiobook and just cannot go on.. I may not be high minded enough for this author.
As always Suzanne Toren is an excellent narrator.