Synopses & Reviews
An edgy portrait of a successful wheeler-dealer on a downward slide, and a peek beneath the smug surface of life in modern-day BerlinIn the new unified Germany, Bernd Willenbrock is the perfect man for the season. A latecomer to the free-market feast, this former East German engineer has shown a downright Darwinian ability to adapt to the new environment. Proud owner of a thriving used-car dealership and an attractive second home, he is a generous husband, pleased by his role of provider. The business practically runs itself, leaving Willenbrock free to spice up his days with extramarital adventures. Prosperity seems guaranteed by a steady stream of cash-only clients from Eastern Europe, and plans for a glitzy new showroom are firmly under way.
Willenbrock's self-satisfaction appears impregnable. Yet little by little, a series of ever-more menacing incidents-an attempted break-in, the theft of several cars, a vicious beating-erode his innermost certainties. No amount of locks and latches, it seems, can contain his growing obsession with external safety, relieve his suspicion of those closest to him, or stop the coming violence.
In cool, detached prose, abundant with subtle ironies, Christoph Hein's portrait of a newly minted man of the West reveals a disturbing and all-too-familiar world where affluence comes at the price of lurking aggression, freedom is pervaded by insecurity, and contentment is undermined by mistrust.
Review
“With quiet exactitude, Christoph Hein describes the shock and anarchy that befell German society after the Great Unification."--Peter Schneider, author of
The Wall Jumper"Willenbrock, a used-car salesman, operates as shrewdly as Robinson Crusoe in Berlin's post-reunification wilderness of oily politicians, brutal thugs, lazy prosecutors, elusive lovers, kindhearted mafiosi. Hein has crafted a stirring political allegory from the midlife regime of work and marriage."--John Beckman, author of The Winter Zoo
Synopsis
A fascinating glimpse into the world of one prosperous man, set upon by the forces of the new world.Bernd Willenbrock is the owner of a used-car dealership in the newly unified Germany. In the nascent free market of Central Europe, the former East German engineer seems to be the paradigm of the new world: a successful businessman, an owner of real estate, and a generous husband. Prosperity seems guaranteed by a steady stream of cash-only clients from Eastern Europe, and plans for a glitzy new showroom are firmly underway. Yet little by little, a series of ever-more menacing incidents—an attempted break-in, the theft of several cars, a vicious beating--erode his innermost certainties. No amount of locks and latches, it seems, can contain his growing obsession with external safety or stop the coming violence.
About the Author
Christoph Hein, novelist, playwright, essayist, is among Europes most respected literary and political voices. A former president of PEN Germany and author of the internationally acclaimed novels
The Distant Lover and
The Tango Player, he lives in Berlin.