The Journey to the East

Poet and novelist Hermann Hesse (1877–1962) was born in Germany and later became a citizen of Switzerland. As a Western man profoundly affected by the mysticism of Eastern thought, he wrote many novels, stories, and essays that bear a vital spiritual force that has captured the imagination and loyalty of many generations of readers. Among his many works are The Glass Bead Game, Steppenwolf, Siddhartha, and Narcissus and Goldmund. In 1946, Hesse was awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature.