THE BLUE OCTAVO NOTEBOOKS by Franz Kafka [1991]

Exact Change, Cambridge, 1991 | Softcover, 107pp | 15 x 20.5 cm

A fascinating glimpse into the private intellectual world of Franz Kafka. Written between 1917 and 1919, The Blue Octavo Notebooks brings together fragments, philosophical aphorisms, literary experiments and reflections on existence, suffering and the human condition. Unlike his celebrated novels and stories, these writings reveal Kafka in a more intimate, exploratory mode, wrestling with the metaphysical questions that run through his work.

Edited by Max Brod and translated by Ernst Kaiser and Eithne Wilkins, this collection includes all eight notebooks, alongside Reflections on Sin, Suffering, Hope, and the True Way and supplementary notes by Brod.

This striking 1991 Exact Change paperback features a haunting black-and-white photographic cover with oversized white typography and turquoise lettering. The minimalist design extends to the black rear cover, while the interior features elegantly restrained typography. Also included is an original Exact Change Summer 1991 catalogue, a lovely piece of independent publishing ephemera that complements the book's distinctive design.

Very good condition: Light signs of handling and minor wear to cover edges and corners; slight surface marks visible on the covers. Internally clean and tightly bound. No inscriptions or annotations.