Matthue Roth - My First Kafka: Runaways, Rodents & Giant Bugs

My First Kafka: Runaways, Rodents & Giant Bugs Copyright text 2013 Matthue Roth
Copyright illustrations 2013 Rohan Daniel Eason ISBN 13: 978-1-935548-71-3 No part of this may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by storage and retrieval system without the written permission of the publisher. For information contact One Peace Books. First published hardcover edition by One Peace Books, Inc. in 2013 Cover and Interior Design by Richard Rodriguez
Edited by Robert McGuire One Peace Books
43-32 22nd Street #204 Long Island City, NY 11101 USA
www.onepeacebooks.com Printed in China Excursion into the Mountains I dont know! I cried without being heard. I do not know. If nobody comes, then nobody comes.

Ive done nobody any harm. Nobodys done me any harm. But nobody will help me. A pack of nobodies would be rather fine, on the other hand. Id love to go on a trip why not? with a pack of nobodies. Into the mountains, of course.

Where else? How these nobodies jostle each other, their arms linked together, these numberless feet treading so close! We travel so happily. The wind blows through us and through the gaps in our company. Our throats swell and are free in the mountains! Its a wonder that we dont burst into song. The Metamorphosis Part 1 Gregor Samsa always had bad dreams. One morning he awoke to find hed become a giant bug. He raised his head and saw it was no dream.

He had a shiny brown stomach and several little legs. Gregor! his mother called. Are you sick? Gregor looked at the clock. He saw that he had slept late. Ill be ready right away, he said. I must get out of bed and go to my office.

I need to work today. Gregor tried to leave his bed. It was harder than he thought to move all his small legs at once. If he moved one, all the others wanted to move as well. The doorbell rang. Gregor got so excited that he threw himself on the floor with a large BANG.

Something has fallen in there! said the manager. Nobody else said anything. Gregor listened. His sister sat at the door and cried. Gregor, said his father, the manager is here. What is the matter? the manager said.

I demand to know! I thought you were so calm, and now you are in a weird mood. Open the door now. Im opening the door! said Gregor. Dont give my parents a hard time! I will go to the office right away. He moved against a chest of drawers so that he could unlock the door. Outside the door everybody was quite puzzled.

Did you understand a single word? said the manager. That sounded like an animals voice. Perhaps hes very ill, said Gregors mother. You must go to the doctor! said his sister. Gregor realized that nobody understood him. He fell against the door and turned the key with his mouth.

Gregor leaned out so only half his body could be seen. His sister looked at their parents. His mother looked at his father. The manager looked at him. Now, said Gregor, Ill get dressed right away. I know Im in a fix but I will work hard to get out of it.

Then he lost his balance and tripped over his many legs. His manager ran out the front door without turning around. Then his father picked up a cane and swatted at him. Gregor tried to say he was sorry but he couldnt say a thing. Between blows, Gregor wriggled back to his room. Part 2 Gregor woke up in the evening.

He smelled something to eat. By the door sat a bowl of sweet milk. Pieces of bread floated inside. Gregor almost laughed with joy. His sister knew that milk was his favorite drink. Surely she had left it for him.

But he could not drink it. Gregor no longer liked milk. He crept back to the middle of the room. In the morning, Gregors sister opened the door to his bedroom. She looked inside eagerly. She slammed the door in surprise but then tiptoed in and took out the milk.

She brought him fresh vegetables, rotten vegetables, bones from the meal last night, some moldy cheese, a slice of dry bread, and a slice of bread and butter. She left very quickly. Gregors small legs buzzed. The time for eating had come. He ate the cheese, the moldy vegetables, and the bones. The fresh food didnt taste good.

He couldnt bear the smell. Gregors sister brought him food every day, while everyone else was asleep. She cleaned up after him too. During the day Gregor crawled back and forth along the walls and the ceiling. He especially liked hanging from the ceiling. It was easier to breathe up there.

But when his sister came in Gregor always hid under the couch. Gregors parents were happy about his sisters work but they never visited him. One day, his mother decided to help. Gregors mother and sister moved around the furniture in his bedroom. Gregor scuttled outside and hung himself in the hall. Then they left the room and his mother glanced at Gregor.

Gregor! she cried. She fell onto the couch and lay there. Gregors sister heard a bell. Their father was home. Mother fainted, said Gregors sister.