The Impatience of the Heart

Austrian writer Stefan Zweig, like no one else, managed to so openly, and at the same time as tactfully as possible, write about the most intimate experiences of a person. Gorky gave this remarkable writer such an assessment: “Stefan Zweig is a rare and happy combination of the talent of a deep thinker with the talent of a first-class artist.” In his only completed novel “The Impatience of the Heart,” the author depicts Austria-Hungary on the eve of World War I, describing the morals and social prejudices of that time. The relationships between young Austrian army lieutenant Anton and the woman in love with him, Edith, rich and beautiful but confined to a wheelchair, are described with extraordinary psychological depth and drama. The novel is about heightened feelings of loneliness, betrayed trust, and the impatience of a heart that did not await a fortunate turn of fate.