Heinrich Boll
1959
Around 290 pages
We are almost done with the 1950s! I feel like many of these authors were in a state of shock from World War II this decade, so it will be interesting to see the zeitgeist shift in the 1960s.
I love stories that are contained in one significant (or insignificant, I'm easy) day. The novel takes place in 1958 Germany, which I imagine was a very raw and strange time. Robert Faehmel is as predictable as I am in my behavior, only instead of spending every day reading, he plays billiards at the Prince Heinrich Hotel. His old schoolmate, Nettlinger, comes to see him, but is denied entry by the hotel concierge. Robert tells his story to the bellboy Hugo about his life, and his experiences resisting the growing Nazi influence during his childhood.
Boll's life was marked by tragedy from World War II, so now he's ready to kick some Nazi ass, and I'm here for it. I didn't love his heavy writing style, but I was intrigued enough by the lives of the characters to enjoy the complexity of the prose, even if it wasn't the most readable novel.
Welcome to the blog HB!
RATING: ****-
Interesting Facts:
Adapted into a film in 1965 entitled Not Reconciled.
UP NEXT: Memento Mori by Muriel Spark
UP NEXT: Memento Mori by Muriel Spark
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