Every Man Dies Alone

By: Hans Fallada, Michael Hofman - translator

Narrated by: George Guidall

Length: 20 hrs and 15 mins

Publisher's summary

Hans Fallada wrote this stunning novel in only 24 days - just after being released from a Nazi insane asylum. Based on a true story, Every Man Dies Alone tells of a German couple who try to start an uprising by distributing anti-fascist postcards during World War II. But their dream ultimately proves perilous under the tyranny that dominates every corner of Hitler’s Germany.

©2009 Melville House Publishing; Translation, Michael Hofman (P)2010 Recorded Books, LLC

Critic reviews

"The book has the suspense of a John le Carré novel, and offers a visceral, chilling portrait of the distrust that permeated everyday German life during the war." (The New Yorker)

Hauntingly brilliant

Any additional comments?

After finishing this book i felt I had to research the true story it was based on. Like the members of The White Rose and other groups that resisted th Nazis, the Quangels (in real life the Hempels) acted with a selflessness and bravery that the reader can't help but admire and aspire to. Could I martyr myself to a cause, even the ultimately most just cause in history, resisting Hitler? Who among us would or could? The Quangels/Hempels were ordinary, hardworking people, not well educated, armed only with a deeply ingrained sense of morality, pen, ink and postcards. This book was one of the first anti-Nazi novels to be published post-WW2. Brilliant, heartbreaking, unforgettable.

Germany in the throws of self destruction

How this happened to a nice and intelligent bunch of people like the Germans is bewildering even today.
Fallada masterfully illuminates this intriguing point in fiction so detailed that it seems more like a documentary work.

Truly, a thrilling work of genius.

Glad it is over!

Interesting, but I was glad to have finished it and go on to something more my style.

A portal into war time Berlin under nazi rule

From the first words you will be transported into a world of frustration, paranoia, and fear, where even the wolves are running from the wolves.

Fantastic!

Great story well told, and the narrator is perfect - a joy to listen to. Wonderful characters, the kind you don’t forget.

Truly great

I first heard about this book from the Ben Shapiro Show and, at the time, I simply added it to my list of books that I should read. Although I'm young (18) and I haven't read as many books as I would have wanted too by now. The Only other book that I could compare it too that I've read is "1984", which given the popularity "1984" has received, I feel that "Every Man Dies Alone" is a better book in every aspect. My main complaint with 1984 is that it all feels impersonal, from Smith's betrayal of the party to his romantic relationship. It all feels as if it's done out of boredom or simple curiosity. The world of 1984 also feels unbelievable, from the lack of prole resistance to how the party is able to keep track of every citizen through cameras, it all feels like a fuzzy and hazy surreal dream. Compared to "EMDA" which, I wouldn't be surprised if it were based on a true story, is all shockingly believable, from how the Gestapo is ran so small details of how Jews with non-Jewish sounding names had to adopt either Israel or Sara. I think that when talking about dystopian societies, truth is often the most juiciest part of these book; and what is truly amazing is when there's no line between truth, adaptation, or fiction. I should mentioned that the narration is top notch, however, since it's one guy, I feel that some of the female characters sound vocally the same, but it was never an issue figuring out who was talking. Everything felt easy too follow and the narration in some points significantly added to my enjoyment of the book.

Hans thought he had finally written a great novel.

And I think he did.
Remember the time you found yourself so close to death, and you never felt more alive. A feeling that stayed with you for some time. You may have that experience after finishing this book.

Enjoyable

I felt that I was all WWII'd out by time I got to this book. I didn't realize it was 20 hours long until I started it, and it went a little slow. But after the 2 or 3 hour mark it really opened up for me. As a 30-something American, I felt this author did what few other WWII books can do... and that was to place me in Berlin, in the experience of many different facets of average German men and women as they either obeyed their commanders, or defied Nazi rule. Ironically, I happened to be listening to Stephen King's "IT" at the same time and saw many similarities of average, seemingly powerless people trying to fight a giant evil that no one believes but them. I am very glad I read this book and if you do attempt it, please give it time to blossom. I seriously was ready to give up on it after two hours, but it grew on me. The characters suddenly came very alive.

Hard Times

Written in 1947, this novel is based on the true story of a working class couple who left anonymous post cards in and around Berlin during the Nazi regime. The subversive cards encouraged people to sabotage the Nazi war effort by slowing down work in any way possible. The real-life couple, as well as the novel's main characters, Otto and Anna Quangel, were eventually captured and executed. There are also several subplots involving neighbors and relatives of the Quangels, including an elderly Jewish woman whose husband was taken away by the Nazis, an SS officer, a young thug making his way up the ranks of the Hitler youth, a female postal worker and her long-philandering husband, and others. Like most stories about Nazi Germany, this is the story of common people struggling just to survive and, sometimes, taking extraordinary risks along the way.

I found [Every Man Dies Alone] difficult to read because of its relentless tension and the relentless cruelty and manipulations of the Nazis and their sympathizers. I'm sure that is exactly the effect that the author had hoped for, but: 1) I felt that I had suffered through similar books before, so there were few surprises; and 2) I just kept wishing that it would be over, since the unhappy ending was inevitable. These comments aren't meant to be disparaging; they just express the emotional impact that the book had on me personally. Would I recommend it? Yes, with the caution that it is far from a light summer read. If you 'appreciated' (I can't say 'enjoyed') books like Night or Schindler's List, you might want to put Every Man Dies Alone on your wish list--but don't expect heroism, suffering, and endurance to be rewarded here, nor the evil to be punished.

Fasinating view of life in Nazi Germany

This is a fascinating book. This book is about a real couple who lived in Berlin during World War 2. Their son was in the German army and was killed during the invasion of France. The couple then started to write and distribute letters and post cards denouncing the war, Hitler and the Nazi regime.

There are many characters in the book. There are several subordinate stories and sub plots written through the novel. All of this is key for me, and American, to understand How Germans lived and what life was like in Nazi Germany. Eventually the couple is caught, tortured and killed. They die with honor and with their dignity intact.

According to Wiki, the book was written, by Hans Fallada in 24 days. He died only a few months after completing the book. The translation works well and there is enough german left to help the book be completely believable. The book was a best seller in 2009, when the English translation was published, and the reason for this is clear when you read it.

There is a great WIKI page about the book, movie and author.