''Klingsor's Last Summer'' is a novella by

Hermann Hesse Hermann Karl Hesse (; 2 July 1877 – 9 August 1962) was a German-Swiss poet, novelist, and painter. His best-known works include ''Demian'', '' Steppenwolf'', '' Siddhartha'', and ''The Glass Bead Game'', each of which explores an individual's ...

. Written over the course of a few weeks in July and August 1919, it was published in December 1919 in the ''

Deutsche Rundschau ''Deutsche Rundschau'' is a literary and political periodical established in 1874 by Julius Rodenberg. It strongly influenced German politics, literature and culture was considered one of the most successful launches of periodicals in Germany. Am ...

''. It was later published (by S. Fischer Verlag) in a volume which included ''Kinderseele'' and ''Klein und Wagner''.

Plot

The story is an account of the final months of the life of Klingsor, a forty-two-year-old expressionist painter. A lover of poetry, a heavy drinker, and a womanizer, he spends his final summer in southern Switzerland, torn between sensuality and spirituality and troubled by feelings of impending death.

Character list

*Klingsor *Louis the cruel *Ersilia *The Queen of the mountains *The Armenian astrologer *Edith 1919 German-language novels Novels by Hermann Hesse Künstlerroman Novels about artists Novels set in Switzerland 1919 German novels German bildungsromans S. Fischer Verlag books {{1910s-bildungsroman-stub