The Golem

As Halloween is getting closer and closer, I have already started my officious countdown to the holiday and my literary season of the witch. This year, The Golem by Gustav Meyrink was the first horror novel I read. Well, not quite actually: I had also read The Exorcist earlier this year, but it was not for my pre-Halloween reads. I had wanted to read The Golem for a long while, wanting to know more about the creature from the Jewish folklore which inspired the story. Ideally I had wanted to read it in Prague where the story is set and where the legend comes from, but as our trip there has not been happening yet, I decided not to wait.

You may ask me how the novel was and if I liked it. I am not certain about it yet. I found it more troubling than truly horrific or even scary, yet it was a fascinating read. I did not expect it, but the golem of the title is more a fleeting, borderline ghostly presence than a monster or an antagonist. He may or may not be there, he may or may not have existed, a manifestation of a soulless, mindless creation. It is psychological horror (I will blog more about this in the upcoming weeks). In many ways, it reminded me of Traumnovelle, the story that inspired Eyes Wide Shut. It was not an easy read, but it is one of the most haunting novels I have read in a long while, of any genre. For those who read it, please feel welcomed to tell me your impressions in the comments.