Mother Courage and Her Children: Mutter Courage und ihre Kinder (Modern Classics)

This is Brecht's play as "interpreted" and "translated" by American playwright Tony Kushner.(Angels in America, etc.) Given that Kushner admits that he does not speak or read German, he has done a remarkable job of making Brecht's play available to English speaking audiences. I have read the play in German, and while Kushner's work is not a translation so much as an adaptation, it does read as an honest vehicle for Brecht's original play. Kushner manages to capture the spirit and vitality of this ferocious indictment of the legalised violence we call war.

A great play, on a very interesting translation of the original, by Tony Kushner.This is one of Brecht's masterpieces.

Ok

good service, good condition. But translation was not very close to original

Unfortunately, I did not read the other reviews before purchasing. I am learning German and was looking for dual language books, and also wanted to know Brecht better. However, Kushner admits in the preface that he has "adapted" the play considerably for a modern English-speaking audience, changing jokes, and even adding profanity that is not in the original. This will not do for my purposes. Well, at least I have the play in the original German. But for learning German by comparing German/English translation, this is definitely not suitable.

I bought this bilingual edition so I'd have the English as a reference, as the German is moderately difficult - clipped, and idiomatic at times, and filled with Swabian slang.Presumably good English translations exist, but I strongly recommend avoiding Tony Kushner's rendition, which is relentlessly unfaithful to the original in word and in spirit, and is altogether more trivial in every way.

Horrible translation. Don’t read it!