Little Man, What Now?

Description

The novel that made Hans Fallada famous in his lifetime, now in Penguin Modern Classics, in a new translation by Michael Hofmann The book that made Hans Fallada famous, Little Man, What Now? is filled with an extraordinary mixture of comedy and desperation. It tells the story of one of European literature's most sympathetic young couples - 'Boy' and 'L mmchen' - as they battle indomitably through a world of grotesque threats in Depression Berlin. A rich gallery of hulking crooks, maternity nurses, nudists, a terrible mother and Nazi streetfighters cannot shake their love for each other. But is love enough in a city as cold and indifferent as Berlin in 1932? The great novel of Weimar Germany, Little Man, What Now? is full of men and women trying to keep ahead of their bills and hang on to their daydreams, from harrassed men's clothing assistants to a very unlucky chocolate shop owner. This brilliant new translation by Michael Hofmann brings to life an entire era, one that was - as neither Fallada nor his characters knew - just about to be swept away.

Hans Fallada was born in Germany in 1893. His life was checkered by a failed adolescent suicide pact in which his friend died, addiction to morphine and alcohol, periods of incarceration in prison and mental hospitals, and brushes with the Nazi regime. His most famous novels include Little Man, What Now?, The Drinker and Alone in Berlin, written in 24 days. Fallada died weeks before its publication, in February 1947 in Berlin.

Superb ... There are chapters which pluck the nerves. There are chapters which raise the spirits -- Graham Greene An inspired work of a great writer ... Fallada is a genius. The "Little Man" is Mr Everybody -- Beryl Bainbridge Such closeness to life -- Herman Hesse Fallada at his best -- Philip Hensher Performs the most astounding task, of taking us to a moment before history * Los Angeles Review of Books *