I have a 1958 printing of this book originally published in 1929, almost a century ago now. This is a book set at a time when flying post from Europe to South America via Africa was the height of romantic adventure. This was a time of extreme personal experience, and the dreamlike narration conveys the astonishing assault on the senses constituted by flying, the amazing sense of isolation as well as of achievement. The alienation of the heroic pilot coming home to mundanity is acutely conveyed but is so alien to today’s reader, used to routine air travel.

This strange, difficult book is narrated by an unnamed, unidentified friend of the protagonist, who switches confusingly between personal recollections of the protagonist, complicit childhood memories shared with the protagonist, and omniscient narration, observing the protagonist in his moments of mental and physical isolation. This isolation culminates in a doomed elopement with a married woman, a childhood friend of the narrator and the protagonist, who attempted to flee a tragic loss in her marriage into a romantic ideal that did not and could not exist.

The reason for this introspective tale is separate from that love story, apparently without connection beyond speculation, and is the narrator’s loss at the protagonist’s death in an air crash. It’s an eulogy of a lost friend.

This is a deep, poetic, deeply sensual tale, rising to high art in the description of the sensations of flight and in the reminiscences of the simple life of rural childhood. The love story jars with the rest, but is also deep and complex, couched in tragedy. Overall, this is a powerful book, but not an easy one to read. I’m glad to have read it - I have little recollection of a previous reading when I was too young to comprehend it - but I don’t think I would read it again, as it doesn’t quite grab me.

To bardzo enigmatyczna książka. Strasznie łatwo pogubić się w jej specyficznej narracji, ale nadaje ona tej opowieści niesamowitego klimatu, a momenty, w których się gubiłam tylko podkręcały aurę tajemniczości i nostalgii. Jest napisana w sposób, który bardzo mi się podobał - mnóstwo metafor i rozbudowanych, niestandardowych opisów.

Mam wrażenie, że każdy w czasie czytania poczuje kompletnie inne emocje i kompletnie inaczej zrozumie tę historię.
Dla mnie "Poczta na Południe" opowiada o miłości, która jest najsilniejszym uczuciem w naszym życiu, a mimo to nim nie kieruje, oddając tę rolę innym, bardziej trywialnym (na pierwszy rzut oka) rzeczom. Tutaj miłość nie pokonuje wszystkich przeszkód i nie jest w stanie połączyć ze sobą dwóch, zupełnie różnych osób. Tutaj miłość odpuszcza, godzi się z faktem, że nie wszyscy są dla siebie stworzeni oraz wiąże się ze stratą, którą każdy przeżywa inaczej. To chyba jest w tej książce najpiękniejsze - podkreśla to jak bardzo różnimy się od siebie i jak olbrzymi wpływ mają tę różnice na nasze życie, które tak trudno w pełni zrozumieć i opisać, bo bycie człowiekiem opiera się na nieuchwytnych rzeczach.

Zdecydowanie ta opowieść wprawiła mnie w filozoficzny nastrój. Warto ją przeczytać - nie wszystkim się spodoba, ale myślę, że każdemu podłoży kilka ciekawych tematów do rozmyślań.

Meni je bilo ponekad teško pratiti tko, što, kad, kako i gdje se odvija radnja. Takve knjige baš i ne volim.

تعبیر پرویز شهدی از اگزوپری به عنوان"((ایکاروس))ی در بند هزارتوی زندگی خاکی,که فکر و ذکرش رهایی از این زندان است"را دوست داشتم.
پیک جنوب سومین اثری که از اگزوپری میخوانم..و تا به اینجا بهترین آنان...
اگزوپری یک نویسنده نیست,یک خلبان است..پرواز جزلاینفک هرچه است که او نوشته.."صحرا و آسمان با سکوت و انزوایش فرد را به سوی اندیشیدن و سلوک سوق میدهد"
سلوک و سوقی که خلبان را به نوعی از اهل زمین بیگانه تر میکند..البته این نوعی بیگانگی در اوج قرابت است,اگزوپری خلبانی ست که هرگاه به زمین بازمیگردد انسان ها را کمتر از انچه در اسمان از انسانیت در ذهن وی وجود دارد,انسانی میبیند..درون مایه داستان معروف شازده کوچولو ی اگزوپری هم همین است..خلبانی بر زمین نشسته که درمیابد انسان های زمین انسانیت را فراموش کرده اند,گویی انسانیت در اسمان است که جای انسان ها نیست..
در قسمت دوم پیک جنوب اما شخصیت پردازی و ساختار جالبی در طرح روایت به چشمم آمد..یک روایت سیال..با دوربینی در حال چرخش مداوم..ساختار جمله ها مدام بهم میخورد و بار دیگر شکل میگیرد..به نوعی سخت خوان است اما کششی از جنس زندگی عادی دارد..همان کششی که سبب میشود برای سوار شدن به تاکسی نوبت مان را به شخص دیگری ندهیم..
در قسمت سوم اما..گویی پرده ای از واقعیت بر همه چیز کشیده میشود,نور کثیف حقیقت..بر این پرده میفتد..مسائل بی اهمیت مهم میشوند و آنچه که باید مهم پنداشته شود فراموش میشود..و در پایان تصویری که بر پرده می افتد مانند نگاهی خالی بر چهره کسی که دوستش داشته ایم میماند..

"یک روز به من گفتی:زندگی ای را دوست داشتم که درست درکش نکرده ام,حتی نمیدانم به چه چیزی نیاز داشته ام؛عطشی بود اندک و زودگذر
آنچه را حدس میزدم پشت همه چیز پنهان بود,بنظرم می امد با تلاشی اندک درکش خواهم کرد,بازش خواهم شناخت و سرانجام به دستش خواهم اورد.در اندیشه حضور ایت دوستی که هرگز نتوانستم به ماهیتش پی ببرم,آشفته حال از اینجا می روم..."

This is a magnificent book. Full stop.

A melancholic work. I think it would have been much better if I could read the book in its original language. It is filled with flowery phrases that must be difficult to translate to Bahasa Indonesia. Too bad I know nothing of french. The book tells about a journey of a man who works as a pilot for a fench air postal service in africa. Seasoned with self-thoughts and roman, this book presents a pov of a man looking at his (short) journey in life and love, typical of Saint-Exupery. But sometimes the voice of "I" changed unnoticably and made me confused. :p

Tác giả là một phi công nên tính thực tế cho tác phẩm rất cao! Mình thích tính thực tiễn.
Quyển này đọc rất khó hiểu, còn khó hiểu hơn quyển “Hoàng tử bé” nữa, đại từ nhân xưng cứ thay đổi liên tục làm mình đến hoa cả mắt, bởi lẽ thật quá khó nếu cứ khó hiểu thì cho ít sao. Khó hiểu vì trình người đọc như mình kém quá thôi! Mong rằng lần đọc lại sau sẽ hiểu thêm được chút chút nữa
Quyển này khá tản mạn, tự sự nhưng lại đậm chất thơ, cứ lãng đãng đúng cái gu của Saint - Exupery. Đọc xong sao thấy đời phi công thật quả không nhẹ nhàng như mình nghĩ trước giờ! Đọc cái tiểu sử về tác giả quả là bác ấy mang nợ với cái nghề, 12 tuổi mà đã biết lái máy bay rồi!
Đây là tác phẩm đầu tay mà bác ấy viết được sâu sắc thế này thì quả tâm tư tình cảm của bác ko hề đơn giản.
Buồn là cuộc đời tác giả cũng kết thúc bởi nghề phi công, cuộc đời ấy ngắn như quyển hồi ức này vậy. Chắc vì thế mà mình thấy quyển này thật quá có giá trị . Thế có nên nghĩ đây là dự tác đầu tay viết sẵn cho dấu chấm hết của cả cuộc đời tác giả không?
Ps: buồn là dịch giả chuyển ngữ quyển này không có tâm một xíu nào...

هر چند فهم داستان و گم نکردنش برام مشکل بود، اما انقدر پر بود از تمثیلات و توصیفات قشنگ که خود داستان برام از اهمیت افتاد. خوندن همان توصیفات حتبغ به تنهایی هم لذت بخش بودن.

I enjoyed the story as best as I could follow it, but something definitely seemed list in the translation.

Šis ir autora pirmais daiļdarbs. Lasīju, jo atradu grāmatplauktā un domāju, ka varbūt būs kaut kas `Mazā prinča` stilā. Pirmās teju 50 lappuses pagāja, neveiksmīgi mēģinot iedziļināties sižetā. Tik haotiski sarakstīts, ka brīžiem nav saprotams, kuri varoņi savā starpā sarunājas, par kuru varoni tiek runāts un vai vispār grāmatai ir kāds sižets, vai tomēr katra nodaļa ir pati par sevi un arī nodaļas ietvaros rindkopas neveido sakarīgu stāstījumu. Tālāk jau palika labāk, vismaz stāsts ieguva saprotamu jēgu, līdz beigu daļā atkal kaut kas pazuda.. Varbūt tā ir lasītāja problēma, varbūt visu vajadzēja lasīt krietni lēnāk un pārdomātāk, bet man galu galā tā arī neradās nekāda sakarīgs izpratne, par ko īsti šī grāmata ir. Tādu neguvu arī, izlasot Alīnas senseno atsauksmi par šo grāmatu - https://filcarotas.wordpress.com/gram....

If there was a metaphor here, it was lost on me. I didn't stop reading mostly because I was stuck on a plane with only this book with me and I finished it because I wanted to find out how many times (and in how many different words) he could call women sad, pathetic, weak, and how their necks reminded him of cows.

Review samo za moniku <3

Reasons why I read this book :
1. Of course, because this is a de Saint-Exupery. I am quite fond of The Little Prince and Terre des Hommes, and eager to read another work of his.
2. Sapardi Djoko Damono wrote introduction to this book.
3. A professor translated this book. Never heard of her name before, or her works, but she should has the academic credibility to translate this well.
4. Have I told you that I always have a soft spot for pretty book covers? No? There, I said it.

But...my, oh my. How this book is hard to understand. Usually I blame this to the translation, but in this case it is less likely (see reason #3). Moreover, a celebrated literary figure raved about how this book is a masterpiece and important to help us better understanding de Saint-Exupery's psyche and situation during World War II (see reason #2!). So, more likely it is just me, being an amateurish literature lover.

I cannot even be sure who is the narrator of this book. Sometimes it is mentioned that Jacques Bernis (main character) is the narrator's friend, who is a fellow pilot. But as a friend, he sure knew a lot of private things and very introspective observation... perhaps Bernis spilled everything out during nights of alcohol intoxication? We will never know.

Regarding the story, I find it quite ironic that Bernis was a pilot for a post company, working to connect people across the world, but he was so lonely. A strange creature among fellow human... even for the elusive Genevieve, whom he loved dearly. Sapardi Djoko Damono said, that mirrored de Saint Exupery's own life, his failed romance with one of his girlfriend, and his existentialistic view of life. It is also interesting to read a very contemplative description of deserts and aloneness, compared to description of cities and society dwelling, which Bernis (or de Saint Exupery himself?) feels he didn't belong to.

On a positive note, as expected from de Saint Exupery, this book also have its own glorious moments. Poetic prose that makes you just want to inhale deeply and savour every words. But still, in general it took me a longer time to comprehend the story than to read it, hence the two stars.

My biggest problem with this book is not its complexity...it is the uneven space. Yes, that is just me being pedantic but...ugh, please, editor, work better. Well, this book of mine is first edition, so hopefully that will be improved in next edition.

Recommended if you want some intellectual challenge (don't buy the first edition, especially if book formatting is one of your pet peeves)