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Seelenfrieden
Description:
"Seelenfrieden" is the name of a villa on the eastern outskirts of Berlin. A *Stolperstein* (memorial cobblestone) outside the garden gate indicates that the property was once Jewish-owned. After changing hands many times, the house now belongs to an elderly lady who runs a kind of upscale guesthouse for wealthy seniors. Klaus-Hinrich Niebuhr, a professor emeritus of Middle High German literature at Berlin’s Humboldt University, moves in. Originally from the former West Germany, he only arrived in the capital several years after German reunification; his knowledge of the GDR’s past is patchy. He views his encounters with the other residents of Villa Seelenfrieden as an opportunity to learn more about the events and conflicts that defined the defunct East German state. These other residents largely hail from the former GDR elite; among them are a retired actress, a former library director, and a journalist. Niebuhr learns of their fates and hears about their struggles. He observes their hopes, desires, disappointments, and obsessions. He finds himself reflecting on his own past, while other threads lead back to the Hitler years and beyond. Eventually, descendants of the villa’s original Jewish owners stake their claims, and the future of this luxurious retirement home suddenly becomes uncertain.
Temporarily out of stock – available within 30 to 40 business days
MARC records are available
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