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Heinrich Boll won the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1972. Born in Cologne in 1917, B ll was raised in a pacifist Catholic family who later opposed Nazism. After an apprenticeship at a bookseller's, he was drafted into the Nazi Wehrmacht before being sent to an American prisoner of war camp in 1945. After the war he enrolled at university, but dropped out to write about his shattering experiences as a soldier- The Train Was on Time was his first novel and he went on to become one of the most important post-war German authors. B ll served for several years as the president of International P.E.N. and was a leading defender of the intellectual freedom of writers throughout the world. He died in 1985.
Boell's novel blows a stent in the human heart, and shows us the terror there. It feels more necessary than ever -- Anna Funder, from the introduction From the moment I stepped on board the troop train with Private Andreas, concerns pertaining to my own world fell away completely. Holding this impelling book is tantamount to holding the young soldier's fate in one's hands. It is impossible to let go. -- Claire-Louise Bennett, author of 'Pond' We must be grateful to the Penguin European Writers series, a precious venture in these dark times -- John Banville My most-admired contemporary novelist -- John Ashbery Boell combines a mammoth intelligence with a literary outlook that is masterful and unique -- Joseph Heller, author of Catch-22 His work reaches the highest level of creative originality and stylistic perfection * Daily Telegraph *
