The dead in your backyard

07Dec11

I grew up in a very pretty village in one of the more picturesque parts of (then) rural Germany. It did have a small factory, but the overall vibe was agricultural. The farmer a couple of streets down would sell you a liter of fresh raw milk for one Mark, and our house was surrounded [...]

Filed under: Childhood, Germany, History, Third Reich, World War II   |  Closed
Tags: Baader Meinhof, cemetery, childhood, concentration camp, forced labor, Germany, Harald Isermeyer, Hitlers Hinterhof, hometown, mortality, Nike missile base, Rote Armee Fraktion, Third Reich

The pursuit of happiness

03Dec11

A few years ago I read all of Victor Klemperer’s Diaries – from 1933 to 1959. I read them in the subway on the way to work, at a time when I felt overwhelmed and miserable. I figured it would be therapeutic to read about the daily life of someone who had it so much [...]

Filed under: Books, Germany, History, Third Reich, Victor Klemperer, World War II, Writers   |  Closed
Tags: bombing of Dresden, Dölzschen, diaries, Eva Klemperer, Hadwig Klemperer, happiness, miserableness, Muschel, persecution of Jews, Q train, stoicism, Third Reich, Victor Klemperer