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Böll – His Complete Universe

Summary/Abstract: Heinrich Böll hid some darker episodes of his life in order not to spoil his reputation. After his death, his family mined his biography so as to definitely block any access to certain aspects of his life. A hard task for a biographer to compose the complete portrait of one of the greatest 20th century German authors and Nobel winner, to understand how he understood the world, to discover the chances he had or the mistakes he did. Linder nevertheless undertakes this laborious tasks and commits several indiscretions, sketching a portrait that might take by surprise admirers or just readers of Böll’s work, even those who knew him or thought they did from what he wanted to let them know of himself. For instance, his war letters: an author whose critical opinions of the state of affairs in the GFR shaped the political conscience of at least two generations appears in a new light. Or the “Ulrike Meinhof” episode that unleashed a fierce campaign against Böll and his family, accused of sympathizing with the terrorists. The man accused of being too much concerned with Germany’s home situation, instead of focusing his attention on the situation of the Soviet dissidents was the one to smuggle from the USSR some of Soljenitzyn’s manuscripts. The truth is that Böll was “different”.

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