In Mr. Lublin’s Store

Agnon’s novel In Mr. Lublin’s Store is a veiled autobiographical account of the years he spent under the protective wings of Schocken. It is a story about a young man from eastern Europe – Agnon – who, “plucked from the soil from which he grew,” moves to Germany. With the outbreak of World War I, and “war increasing and spreading,” the protagonist finds himself in Leipzig, alone and penniless. It was then that he finds in “Mr. Lublin” a generous benefactor with a “flair for helping others.”

Agnon describes how, through a driving will, Lublin went from being an errand boy to one of Germany’s most successful entrepreneurs. Driven by furious energies and powerful ideals, this self-made man carved out a new life and a new identify. Agnon goes on to describe how this man of action shook up markets and remade history. He explains that Lublin succeeded because, unlike older and more established merchants, he learned how to change with the times.

In Mr. Lublin’s Store was Agnon’s last novel, published posthumously.