Available for the first time in English, here is an unforgettable
novel about the desolation of Hitler's post-war Germany.
Late April, 1945. The war is over, yet Dr Doll, a loner and "moderate
pessimist", lives in constant fear. By night, he is haunted by
nightmarish images of the bombsite in which he is trapped--he, and the
rest of Germany. More than anything, he wishes to vanquish the demon of
collective guilt, but he is unable to right any wrongs, especially in
his position as mayor of a small town in north-east Germany that has
been occupied by the Red Army.
Dr Doll flees for Berlin, where he finds escape in a morphine addiction:
each dose is a "small death". He tries to make his way in the chaos of a
city torn apart by war, accompanied by his young wife, who shares his
addiction. Fighting to save two lives, he tentatively begins to believe
in a better future.
Nightmare in Berlin captures the demoralized and desperate atmosphere
of post-war Germany in a way that has never been matched or surpassed.