Book description
This never-before-translated masterpiece—by a heroic best-selling writer who saw his life crumble when he wouldn’t join the Nazi Party—is based on a true story.
It presents a richly detailed portrait of life in Berlin under the Nazis and tells the sweeping saga of one working-class couple who decides to take…
Why read it?
2 authors picked Every Man Dies Alone as one of their favorite books. Why do they recommend it?
Based on a true story, this novel focuses on Anna and Otto Quangel, a working-class married couple who begin to resist the Nazis after losing their only son in the fighting. The novel is dense, immersive, and rich with characters, ranging from rabid Nazi members to those opposing the murderous goals of the party and those in the middle trying to survive the regime. “Most people today are afraid, basically everyone, because they’re all up to something forbidden, one way or another, and are worried someone will get wind of it,” Quangel thinks to himself. Fallada wrote the novel in…
From L. Annette's list on German complicity and resistance in WW2.
Written in 1947 Every Man Dies Alone was discovered by the English-speaking world half a century later. I read it in 2009 and was taken by its suspense and authenticity. The novel is based on the story of Otto and Elise Hampel, a working-class couple who had conducted a postcard campaign against Hitler. For two years the Gestapo was unable to detect them. Captured in October 1942, they were sentenced to death. After the war, Hans Fallada (real name Rudolf Ditzen) read the Hampels’ Gestapo files and produced this novel in 24 days. Having spent the war in Berlin, he…
From Alexandra's list on about World War 2 with a touch of philosophy.
If you love Every Man Dies Alone...
These Blue Mountains
A moving story of love, betrayal, and the enduring power of hope in the face of darkness.
German pianist Hedda Schlagel's world collapsed when her fiancé, Fritz, vanished after being sent to an enemy alien camp in the United States during the Great War. Fifteen years later, in 1932, Hedda…
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