Der Turm

The Dresden villa district, long covered in decay gray by the real existing socialism, isolates itself. Anne and Richard Hoffmann find themselves in conflict between adaptation and rebellion: Can one escape the demands of the system by retreating into Dresden nostalgia? Or is it time to choose emigration? Their eldest son, Christian, feels the harshness of the system in the NVA. His uncle Meno Rohde stands between worlds: he has access to the "East" district, where the nomenclature resides, the life stories of people are managed, and German democratic law is upheld. In epic language, with both lovingly detailed and dramatic scenes, Uwe Tellkamp describes the downfall of a social system. A monumental panorama of the declining GDR, where members of three generations are both shaping and helplessly swept along by the maelstrom of the 1989 revolution. No other book in recent years has captivated critics and audiences alike to such an extent.