The Radetzky March

by Joseph Roth • 1932

The preeminent chronicler of the deterioration of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, Joseph Roth is an author drawn to disputed borders whose work brilliantly maps a region once again in turmoil. With the cultural rediscovery of Mitteleuropa, Roth's territory - geographical and spiritual - is sharply back in focus. The Radetzky March, first published in 1932, is Joseph Roth's greatest literary achievement, a novel of world literary rank. Spanning three generations of the Trotta family and set in the waning days of the Hapsburg Empire, the novel unfolds with marvelous subtlety to reveal its splendidly modern ironies. One event sets the novel in motion: as Captain Joseph Trotta, a Slovenian infantryman, saves the Emperor Franz Joseph from a bullet, Trotta's act, with the inexorable power of destiny, determines the lives of the succeeding sons of the Trotta family until, generations later, the Austro-Hungarian Empire and the elder Trotta's heroic act lose their mythical power over those held in their thrall.