Hans Giebenrath lives among the dull and respectable townsfolk of a sleepy Black Forest village. When he is discovered to be an exceptionally gifted student, the entire community presses him onto a path of serious scholarship. Hans dutifully follows the regimen of study and endless examinations, his success rewarded only with more crushing assignments. When Hans befriends a rebellious young poet, he begins to imagine other possibilities outside the narrowly circumscribed world of the academy. Finally sent home after a nervous breakdown, Hans is revived by nature and romance, and vows never to return to the gray conformity of the academic system.

藝術童話是世界文學裡最受歡迎的敘事形式，而且沒有一位二十世紀的德語文學作家像赫塞一樣，在童話創作上下了極深的功夫。赫塞的童話光譜極廣，有薄伽丘式的敘事傳統，也有一千零一夜似的故事、幻想與心理分析啟發的夢的解析。
古典童話常描述愛情的幸與不幸、虛榮的夢想、得到保護的渴望，在赫塞筆下都換上了現代面貌。這些童話始終與生活息息相關。他筆下的花、鳥、山、樹木與天堂具有感性的神祕魅力，引導人從黑暗走向光明。赫塞寫了許多關於青春期的童話，讓人領會到人類成長發展有多麼不可思議。

一九四六年諾貝爾文學獎得主，德國大文豪：赫塞，以令人心神震憾的筆法，深刻地描述一個人如何冒著生命全面崩潰的危險，經歷種種生命過程中的外在磨折，開始他內在心靈的追尋，而去掌握住那種難以捉摸的人類存在意義的故事。書中主人翁赫勒反抗這個使人越陷越深、逐漸戕害人類精神與靈魂的世界，他企圖揭發這個時代的缺憾與病態。本質上，這是一次地獄之旅，一次時而恐怖、時而勇猛的生命之旅；通過了渾噩的洪荒之境，他立定決心遍歷煉獄，與混沌交戰，而且擔當一切罪孽，這就是本書主旨。在追尋的過程中，赫勒歷經一個似夢、似幻、似真的詭異奇境，他經歷了無數虛幻的世界魔幻的劇場，最後終於肯定：在這外在世界的表象之內，其實隱藏著無限的莊嚴、不朽與神聖；超越一切外在事物的野性與混亂，便是一個超然而永恆的世界。

This book chronicles the spiritual evolution of a man living in India at the time of the Buddha—a tale that has inspired generations of readers. We are invited along Siddhartha's journey experiencing his highs, lows, loves, and disappointments along the way. Hesse begins by showing us the life of a privileged brahmin's son. Handsome, well-loved, and growing increasingly dissatisfied with the life expected of him, Siddhartha sets out on his journey, not realizing that he is fulfilling the prophesies proclaimed at his birth. Siddhartha blends in with the world, showing the reader the beauty and intricacies of the mind, nature, and his experiences on the path to enlightenment.
Sherab Chödzin Kohn's flowing, poetic translation conveys the philosophical and spiritual nuances of Hesse's text, paying special attention to the qualities of meditative experience. Also included is an extensive introduction by Paul W. Morris that discusses the impact Siddhartha has had on American culture.

Wie alle Hauptwerke Hermann Hesses hat auch der Demian, den der damals 40jährige Autor mitten im Ersten Weltkrieg schrieb, eine ebenso ungewöhnliche wie spannende Entstehungs- und Wirkungsgeschichte. Daß dieses im Herbst 1917 vollendete Buch erst im Juni 1919, ein halbes Jahr nach Kriegsende, veröffentlicht wurde, lag an der Unbekanntheit des Verfassers. Denn Hesse hatte das Manuskript dem Verlag als das Erstlingswerk eines kranken jungen Dichters empfohlen, des zeitkritischen Poeten Emil Sinclair, der bisher nur in Zeitungen und Zeitschriften durch pazifistische Mahnrufe und Erzählungen aufgefallen war (die gleichfalls von Hesse stammten). Doch trotz des Inkognitos erlebte das Buch eine geradezu stürmische Aufnahme und wurde noch im Erscheinungsjahr mit dem Fontane-Preis für das beste Erstlingswerk eines Nachwuchsautors ausgezeichnet. Thomas Mann verglich die elektrisierende Wirkung des Buches mit der von Goethes Werther, da es »mit unheimlicher Genauigkeit den Nerv der Zeit traf und eine ganze Jugend, die wähnte aus ihrer Mitte sei ihr ein Künder ihres tiefsten Lebens entstanden, zu dankbarem Entzücken hinriß«. Bis zur Entdeckung des Pseudonyms im Mai 1920 erschienen drei Auflagen, denen dann unter Hesses eigenem Namen zu seinen Lebzeiten noch 93 weitere folgten.

is a poetical self-portrait of a man who felt himself to be half-human and half-wolf. This Faust-like and magical story is evidence of Hesse's searching philosophy and extraordinary sense of humanity as he tells of the humanization of a middle-aged misanthrope. Yet his novel can also be seen as a plea for rigorous self-examination and an indictment of the intellectual hypocrisy of the period. As Hesse himself remarked, "Of all my books
is the one that was more often and more violently misunderstood than any of the others".

Herman Hesse's classic novel has delighted, inspired, and influenced generations of readers, writers, and thinkers. In this story of a wealthy Indian Brahmin who casts off a life of privilege to seek spiritual fulfillment. Hesse synthesizes disparate philosophies--Eastern religions, Jungian archetypes, Western individualism--into a unique vision of life as expressed through one man's search for true meaning.

德米安：彷徨少年时》是黑塞的代表作之一，讲述少年辛克莱寻找通向自身之路的艰辛历程。出生并成长于 “光明世界”的辛克莱，偶然发现截然不同的“另一个世界”，那里的纷乱和黑暗，使他焦虑困惑，并陷入谎言带来的灾难之中。这时，一个名叫德米安的少年出现，将他带出沼泽地，从此他开始走向孤独寻找自我的前路。之后的若干年，“德米安”以不同的身份面目出现，在他每一次孤独寻找、艰难抉择的时候，成为他的引路人……

Klingsor's Last Summer tells the story of a famous painter named Klingsor as he experiences a final burst of creativity in his last summer of life. He grabs the cup of life with both hands and drinks until he simply cannot take any more.

Klingsor is an expressionist painter ruled by emotion, his commitment to art is total, for art is the embodiment of what he feels to be the essence of life. Klingsor’s most prominent traits are his love of extremes. As a person he is violently opposed to moderation or mediocrity. He burns the candle at both ends and shuns the safety of moderation.

Klingsor is very much a man of the moment. He does not like to plan ahead in any way. He does not believe in tomorrow and he regards every day as his last. Klingsor's two primary interests in life are creating art and making love and he succeeds in both endeavors.

Like Demian, Siddhartha, Goldmund, and Joseph Knecht, Klingsor is no ordinary person. He has attained a remarkable degree of success in his chosen field and he works intensely to maintain this level of achievement. Like other Hesse’s heroes, Klingsor seeks and finds his own unique and independent path to fulfillment.

The style of the story is expressionist, it conveys a feeling of exuberance and excitement. The imagery is wild and colorful. The reader feels transported to Klingsor’s side as he attempts to embrace the wonders of life and nature with his entire being, only to accept that his time is nearly up.

The novel is somehow autobiographical, Hesse began painting around 1917 and Klingsor's Last Summer was written in the summer of 1919, the novel is a more direct self-portrait of the Hesse of that year when Hesse settled in the Ticino mountain village of Montagnola to start a new life without his wife and children.

Some of the characters have relevance to Hesse's real life. Hermann the poet could be a self reference and Louis was modeled on Hesse's artist friend Louis Moilliet. Klingor, the name, is taken from the magician who appears in Richard Wagner's opera Parsifal.

tells the story of two medieval men whose characters are diametrically opposite: Narcissus, an ascetic monk firm in his religious commitment, and Goldmund, a romantic youth hungry for knowledge and worldly experience. First published in 1930, Hesse's novel remains a moving and pointed exploration of the conflict between the life of the spirit and the life of the flesh. It is a theme that transcends all time.

This synthesis of prose, poetry, and watercolor sketches--one of Hesse's favorite books--has never before appeared in English.
In 1920, after settling in the Ticino mountain village of Montagnola, he published Wandering, a love letter to this magic-garden world that can be read as a meditation on his attempt to begin a new life. His pure prose, his heartfelt lyricism, and his love for the old earth, for its blessings that renew themselves, all sing in this serene book.109 pages with b&w reproductions of watercolors.

"Es war einmal einer namens Harry, genannt der Steppenwolf. Er ging auf zwei Beinen, trug Kleider und war ein Mensch, aber eigentlich war er doch eben ein Steppenwolf." Der erstmals 1927 erschienene Roman Der Steppenwolf vor allem begründet den Weltruf Hermann Hesses und ist dasjenige Buch, das die internationale Renaissance seines Autors in den sechziger und siebziger Jahren ausgelöst hat.
Der Steppenwolf ist die Geschichte von Harry Haller, der sich im Zustand völliger Entfremdung von seiner bürgerlichen Welt "eine geniale, eine unbegrenzte furchtbare Leidensfähigkeit herangebildet" hat. Die innere Zerrissenheit Hallers spiegelt die Erscheinungen der modernen Massen- und Industriegesellschaft wider und reflektiert kultur- und zivilisationskritische Strömungen des 20. Jahrhunderts.

"Siddhartha" is perhaps the most important and compelling moral allegory our troubled century has produced. Integrating Eastern and Western spiritual traditions with psychoanalysis and philosophy, this strangely simple tale, written with a deep and moving empathy for humanity, has touched the lives of millions since its original publication in 1922. Translated by Joachim Neugroschel Introduction by Ralph Freedman

A single volume of the most beautiful texts by Hermann Hesse including intimate memories of his final years. Hesse collected life sketches, poems, aphorisms and short essays dedicated to the ultimate challenge of a writer who had already accomplished a celebrated body of work - that of accepting his final years and the approach of death with grace.