Fall Book Club: Every Man Dies Alone by Hans Fallada (Part 3 of 3)

Originally published in German in 1947, then published in English in 2009 after being rediscovered, Hans Fallada’s novel is also an excellent example of historical fiction that hews very close to pure history. All plot events are the types of things that actually happened in domestic German society during the war (which were intimately known by the author, who lived through them himself). Its two main characters are based on real people who were executed for sedition. With a Dickensian cast, this book portrays ordinary lives in Berlin under a totalitarian regime that rules by fear. But Fallada’s story also explores those who find they must resist their fears.

Book club leader is Dr. Bärbel Such, Associate Professor of German Literature, Ohio University.