The silence

Photo album of a century: multifaceted, powerful in language, and idiosyncratic. One hundred years from the history of two families and the history of a country. It begins with a photo album, the oldest pictures over eighty years old: one hundred photographs of two families, one originating from East Prussia, the other from Lower Lusatia. Two world wars, inflation, flight, and expulsion have shaped the lives of these two families across five political systems, from the imperial era to the present day. Following the photographs, Reinhard Jirgl tells moving stories of wounds, love, and betrayal. Georg-Büchner Prize 2010. Reinhard Jirgl's 'Die Stille' overwhelms with the full force of existentialism. Oliver Jungen in the 'FAZ'.