The Strudlhof Steps is an unsurpassed portrait of Vienna in the twentieth-century, a novel crowded with characters, from the elegant, alcoholic Prussian aristocrat through "respectable," narrow shopkeepers through sexual adventurers, bohemians, grifters, and honest working-class folk, in which the greatest character is the city itself. This panorama is brought to a central focus through the outdoor staircase of the title, a triumph of engineering and architecture from which radiate energy, form, and mythic significance. By linking two interwoven time periods, 1908-1911 and 1923-1925, it stands as an emblem in stone of the novel's subtitle, The Depth of the Years. A novelist's novel, beloved by many writers for its craft, but also an affectionately treasured popular success.