Interested in German books? Join us online for a discussion about the novel 'Menschen im Hotel' by Vicki Baum. New members welcome!
ABOUT THE BOOK:
A grand hotel in the center of 1920s Berlin serves as a microcosm of the modern world in Vicki Baum’s celebrated novel, a Weimar-era best seller that retains all its verve and luster today.
Among the guests of the hotel is Doctor Otternschlag, a World War I veteran whose face has been sliced in half by a shell. Day after day he emerges to read the paper in the lobby, discreetly inquiring at the desk if the letter he’s been awaiting for years has arrived. Then there is Grusinskaya, a great ballerina now fighting a losing battle not so much against age as against her fear of it, who may or may not be made for Gaigern, a sleek professional thief. Herr Preysing also checks in, the director of a family firm that isn’t as flourishing as it appears, who would never imagine that Kringelein, his underling, a timorous petty clerk he’s bullied for years, has also come to Berlin, determined to live at last now that he’s received a medical death sentence. All these characters and more, with all their secrets and aspirations, come together and come alive in the pages of Baum’s delicious and disturbing masterpiece.
Extract in German: Menschen im Hotel
ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
Vicki Baum was born into a Jewish family in Vienna, Austria, in 1888.
She was a trained musician and from 1926 worked as an editor in Berlin.
She moved to the United States in 1932 and when her books were banned in the Third Reich in 1938, she started publishing in English. Her novels have been translated into numerous languages and some (along with
Grand Hotel) have been dramatised and filmed. She died in Los Angeles in 1960.
Text Source: goodreads.com
WHO CAN PARTICIPATE?
Everyone who wants to read and discover German books and share their reading experience with others is welcome. The conversation will be in German. All participants should have sufficient language skills to read and discuss in German.
Participation is free of charge.
Registration
To receive the link for participation in our digital book club meeting, please send an email to library-glasgow@goethe.de.
TECHNICAL REQUIREMENTS
We will use
Zoom for our meeting. We recommend the use of a headset, as speakers can create disturbing echo effects. Participation is possible from PC and Mac. To participate, simply follow the link we will send you when you register.
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