Witwe im Wahn

Between Circe and Power Woman. The list of her lovers reads like a "Who's Who" of the first half of the twentieth century. Who was the woman who was married to Gustav Mahler, Walter Gropius, and Franz Werfel, who had a wild love affair with Oskar Kokoschka, and who had Gerhart Hauptmann at her feet? Oliver Hilmes paints a multifaceted portrait in his comprehensive biography of a woman who was hysterical, anti-Semitic, and domineering - but also inspiring, intelligent, and passionate. The first unvarnished biography of Alma Mahler-Werfel. Alma Maria Schindler, widow of Mahler, divorced from Gropius, widow of Werfel (1879-1964), was undoubtedly an extraordinary woman, while also being highly controversial. Even today, opinions about her are divided. For some, she is the muse of the four arts; for others, she is simply a power-hungry and sex-obsessed woman.