A Companion to Twentieth-Century German Literature

The topicality of Germany and its cultural heritage has never been more apparent, and a knowledge of the unique and fascinating contribution of the German-speaking countries to twentieth-century literature is essential in any attempt to understand the European mind. The giants of the early part of the century, such as Thomas Mann, Heinrich Mann, and Karl Kraus, have found worthy successors in writers like Gunter Grass, Christa Wolf, Max Frisch, and Hans Magnus Enzensberger, while the spirit of Heine has found new life in the songs of Wolf Biermann. This invaluable work of reference contains brief entries, at once biographical and critical, on over four hundred authors of fiction, poetry, and drama from Germany, Austria, and Switzerland. In addition, it provides information on schools and movements, critical terms and slogans, and selected aspects of the other arts, especially film. Information includes basic biographical facts, involvement in literary groups and political developments, listings of most works in all relevant genres, with summaries or stylistic characterisation.;No publication in English offers material similar in range and depth on German literature of this century.