Author: Hermynia Zur Muhlen
Hermynia Zur Mühlen (1883–1951), one of the 20th century’s great political writers, was not seemingly destined for a revolutionary, unconventional literary career.
Born in Vienna to an aristocratic Catholic family, Zur Mühlen married an Estonian count. But she rebelled, leaving her upper class life to be with the Hungarian writer and communist Stefan Klein, and supporting herself through translations and publications. Altogether, Zur Mühlen wrote 30 novels, mysteries, and story collections, and translated around 150 works, including those of Upton Sinclair, John Galsworthy, and Edna Ferber. A wonderful new addition to the Oddly Modern Fairy Tales series, The Castle of Truth and Other Revolutionary Tales presents English readers with a selection of Zur Mühlen’s best political fairy tales, some translated from German for the first time.
In contrast to the classical tales of the Brothers Grimm and Hans Christian Andersen, Zur Mühlen’s candid, forthright stories focus on social justice and the plight of the working class, with innovative plots intended to raise the political consciousness of readers young and old.
