- Paperback: 192 pages
- Publisher: Penguin Books Ltd (25 Nov 2004)
- Language English
- ISBN-10: 0141009144
- ISBN-13: 978-0141009148
- Product Dimensions: 19.6 x 12.6 x 1.6 cm
- Average Customer Review: 3.2 out of 5 stars See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 1,700,655 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
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More About the Author
Product Description
Product Description
The renowned author, Rudolf Herter, is in Vienna, having been invited to read from his masterwork The Invention of Love. During one TV interview he is confronted by a question that will come to haunt him -- can a work of imagination help to understand the nature of evil? Can a modern-day novelist write of the horrors of war and, in particular, Adolf Hitler? Later in his visit, Herter is approached by an old couple, the Falks, who, inspired by his performance, have a painful true account of their own they wish to pass on to him. They force him to promise that he will never tell a soul until after they have died. Only then can the truth be revealed. They were servants, working at the Furhrer's retreat, Berchesgaden, where they looked after Hitler's lover, Eva Braun, who was a permanent guest at the house. In time, they would all come to share a closely guarded secret. And ultimately their lives would become further intertwine through an act of brutality that would scar them forever. The Falk's confession forces Herter to respond to the question he has been unable to answer and his personal quest for that truth is shocking, profound and deeply moving. Mulisch's excavation of the human heart and the burden of the past is a tour de force and confirms him as one of Europe's most exciting and thought-provoking writers
About the Author
Harry Mulisch was born in Holland. His work includes The Discovery of Heaven and The Procedure. He has also written other novels, short stories, essays, plays and philosophical works. His best-selling novel, The Assault was made in to an award-winning film. He lives in Amsterdam.
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Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
Hopefully the bad reviews are a product of the English translation of this novel as I do not recognize anything written in this poor reviews. In my opinion this book is a fabulous fight from the author. He conquered Hitler by means of this story.
This book is really one of my favourites but then I love everything Mulisch wrote.
This book is really one of my favourites but then I love everything Mulisch wrote.
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
Rudolf Herter is an, in his own opinion brilliant, elderly Dutch writer with an Austrian background. After a lecture in Vienna he gets in contact with the former personal servants of Hitler and via them he finds out that Hitler and Eva Braun had a son and that this son met an untimely death. He thinks that through these revelations he has also gotten a better insight into the being of Hitler, but in the end this insight proves to be fatal.
This book covers an intriguing subject, Hitler. The brilliant Rudolf Herter radiates his brilliance a little bit too obviously and this makes this alter ago of the author rather irritating, especially in the first part of the book. As the story develops, the book becomes more intriguing and more pleasant to read. But in the end the question remains whether Mulisch succeeded in explaining Hitler and one can wonder whether anybody will ever be able to explain Hitler.
This book covers an intriguing subject, Hitler. The brilliant Rudolf Herter radiates his brilliance a little bit too obviously and this makes this alter ago of the author rather irritating, especially in the first part of the book. As the story develops, the book becomes more intriguing and more pleasant to read. But in the end the question remains whether Mulisch succeeded in explaining Hitler and one can wonder whether anybody will ever be able to explain Hitler.
1 of 2 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
Inspite of what others have said I think the philosophy at the end is key to the story. It is excellent prose and I will definitely buy one of his books again. Having just read Ian Kershaw's biography of Hitler I feel that Mulisch captures Hitler's essence very well.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
Good set-up, regrettable descent into philosophical name-dropping...
I love philosophy, and its integration into literature can be incredibly enriching. That said, I felt that this book was completely undermined by its descent into name-dropping... Read more
Published 13 months ago by Junglist
Thin Gruel
Well regarded Dutch author Mulisch tosses his hat into the crowded ring of Hitler fiction with this brief novel pondering the notion of Hitler having sired a child by Eva Braun. Read more
Published on 9 Feb 2004 by A. Ross
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