Kloktat dehet – 2 CDmp3 (te Mark Kristin Hochman)

This Czech-language audiobook presents Jchym Topols novel, read by Mark Kristin Hochman, with music by Martin Kratochvl and Tony Ackerman. A vivid and fatefully topical work by a widely acclaimed writer, The Devils Throat became the 2005 Book of the Year in the Lidov noviny poll and has been translated into more than ten languages. An extraordinary fusion of fantasy and reality creates a thoroughly convincing fiction about an unconquered Czech nation that rises against its occupiers in 1968. Everything is seen through the eyes of an adolescent boy who spends much of his time struggling to understand himself. The story moves between good and evil, truth and lies, with falsehood punished by the titular gargling of tar. Yet humour is equally important: the protagonist is a roguish, clever and deceitful trickster in the tradition of the Good Soldier vejk. Dwarfs, giraffes, elephants, circus riders and bear tamers pass through the story as the author, through his hero, sees history as a theatre of cruelty and a bestial carnival in which truth and love rarely stand a chance. This fictional adventure of a heroic Czech nation fighting the Russian army reaches toward reality, while its topical connection with the war in the neighbouring country gives the audio version exceptional emotional force. Mark Kristin Hochmans performance is in perfect harmony with the central character.