Book cover of My Dear Li: Correspondence, 1937-1946

Book description

Personal letters reveal the quandary of a prominent German physicist during the Nazi years and the strength he shared with his loving wife

Nobel Prize-winning physicist Werner Heisenberg lived far from his wife, Elisabeth, during most of the Second World War. An eminent scientist, Werner headed Germany's national atomic research…

When you buy books, we may earn a commission that helps keep our lights on (or join the rebellion as a member).

Why read it?

1 author picked My Dear Li as one of their favorite books. Why do they recommend it?

I wrote my books to reveal how a government’s lies about the present and past corrupts not only public life, but reaches deep into the psyches of individuals.

The correspondence between the physicist Heisenberg, working in secret on the atomic bomb (notoriously unsuccessfully), and his wife safe in Bavaria provides an intimate glimpse of how deeply the Nazi regime penetrated family life and challenged the natural love of one’s homeland.

Heisenberg and his wife were very much in love, devoted to each other and their children. They had a true and equal partnership. Readers can enjoy the sweet irony of…

From Abby's list on when history gets personal.

If you love My Dear Li...

Book cover of December on 5C4

December on 5C4 by Adam Strassberg,

Magical realism meets the magic of Christmas in this mix of Jewish, New Testament, and Santa stories–all reenacted in an urban psychiatric hospital!

On locked ward 5C4, Josh, a patient with many similarities to Jesus, is hospitalized concurrently with Nick, a patient with many similarities to Santa. The two argue…

Want books like My Dear Li?

Our community of 12,000+ authors has personally recommended 100 books like My Dear Li.

Browse books like My Dear Li

Book cover of A Woman in Berlin: Eight Weeks in the Conquered City
Book cover of Cultural Amnesia: Necessary Memories from History and the Arts
Book cover of Babi Yar: A Document in the Form of a Novel

Share your top 3 reads of 2025!

And get a beautiful page showing off your 3 favorite reads.

1,299

readers submitted
so far, will you?

📚 If you like My Dear Li, you might also like...

Book cover of Raggedyland

Raggedyland by Paul J. Heald,

An auctioned storage locker comes with a box of Raggedy Ann books and a dresser drawer stuffed with grisly momentos. A small college town in Georgia is now ground zero for a mind-bending cold case.

Local journalist James Murphy wishes he had never bought the storage unit which either contains…

Book cover of Selkie Moon

Selkie Moon by Kelly Jarvis,

We are all surrounded by darkness. And we are all drawn to the light.

The Orkney Islands north of Scotland are steeped in stories of selkies, seal folk who swim in cold ocean waters and shed their skins to sing and dance on land.

One young girl named Isla uses…

5 book lists we think you will like!