The Dark Room: World War 2 Fiction
By (Author) Rachel Seiffert
Vintage Publishing
Vintage
1st February 2002
7th February 2002
United Kingdom
General
Fiction
Modern and contemporary fiction: general and literary
Far-right political ideologies and movements
Historical fiction
823.92
Short-listed for Booker Prize for Fiction 2001
Paperback
400
Width 129mm, Height 198mm, Spine 25mm
277g
'An important book, a powerful commentary on the moral issues of the last century with the realisation that no one is completely blameless - extraordinary' Sunday Express The Dark Room tells the stories of three ordinary Germans- Helmut, a young photographer in Berlin in the 1930s who uses his craft to express his patriotic fervour; Lore, a twelve-year-old girl who in 1945 guides her young siblings across a devastated Germany after her Nazi parents are seized by the Allies; and, fifty years later, Micha, a young teacher obsessed with what his loving grandfather did in the war, struggling to deal with the past of his family and his country.
Intensely observed debut Perfectly balanced * Guardian *
A startlingly powerful debut... Not to be missed * Daily Mail *
Ambitious and powerful... Seiffert writes lean, clean prose. Deftly, she hangs large ideas on the vivid private experiences of her principal characters.... Poignant - and ultimately optimistic... Engrossing * New York Times *
What a bold book... Compelling... Challenging and substantial * Time Out *
Guilt, shame, responsibility, new beginnings, the individual in history - these are Seiffert's subjects, conveyed in a style of deceptive simplicity... Provocative and accomplished * The Times *
The daughter of a German mother and an Australian father, Rachel Seiffert has spent most of her life in Oxford and Glasgow. She now lives in Berlin.