Kurt Tucholsky - Rheinsberg Ein Bilderbuch für Verliebte
Rheinsberg - A Story Book for Lovers
Kurt Tucholsky was a German journalist and writer. He was born in 1890 in Berlin and died (very likely) by suicide in Sweden in 1935. Due to the limitations on the freedom of speech in Germany he fled to Sweden in 1929. He considered himself a left-wing democrat, socialist, pacifist, and antimilitarist. His books were burnt by the Nazis.
Rheinsberg - Tucholsky's little prosaic idyll - about the lovers Claire and Wölfchen, who try to escape the everyday life of big city life in Berlin, made the author famous overnight. It was published in 1912 and quite shocking considering its frank and calm way of discussing love, erotic, and sexual desire.
The summer days of Wolfgang and Claire are filled with harmless pleasures - walks and boat trips, castle tours, and lounging - and interspersed with the banter of lovers. All this is described in a cheerful, playful, and casual way, but basically, everything is decorative accessories: the castle and the city, but also the content of the conversations.
This book is available in English and German under the same title: Rheinsberg. It is a very short book. I recommend to read it in German for people with fluency levels B1 or higher. For everybody else, I recommend getting the German and English versions to help you understand the story properly.
If you would like to participate in the Book Club post the answers to the questions (and all other comments) in the comments and hopefully we will have a fruitful discussion.
Questions:
Did you like the book and why did you like it or didn't like it?
Do you think you recognized something specific "German"?
Were you surprised that the book was written in 1912 considering its style and the topics it depicts and if so: why? And if not: why not?
Did you find Claire and Wölfchen relatable?
Considering, Tucholsky named the novel after the real Schloß Rheinsberg, do you think the place has significance for the story, or could the story have been taken place anywhere?
Is the story really a love story?
Was there anything about the story or writing that stood out to you?
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