Book Review: : The Novelist from Berlin by V.S. Alexander

Rating:⭐⭐⭐⭐

The Novelist from Berlin by V.S. Alexander is a well-researched work of historical fiction. Based loosely on the life of German novelist Irmgard Keun, the story revolves around Niki (real name Marie Rittenhaus), once an aspiring actress, who eventually becomes a novelist (under a pseudonym) writing about the life of German woman of that era. Her novels are popular and though she continues to write despite Nazi Germany enforcing censorship, her true identity is eventually revealed, and her novels are banned by the Nazi regime on account of her work defying the norms of acceptability as imposed by the ruling party. Her husband, a film producer, bows to political pressure to produce propaganda films. Niki eventually flees but is tracked down by her husband and his contacts and is separated from her young daughter. The novel follows Niki’s journey from 1929 through the end of the Weimar Republic and the rise of Nazi Germany, the WWII years as she flees to Amsterdam and joins the Dutch Resistance, her subsequent return to Germany in hopes of reuniting with her daughter in the aftermath of WWII, and through the 1960s as the newly constructed Berlin Wall cuts off access to West Berlin and she and her dear ones struggle to escape from East Berlin.

The narrative is presented from the perspective of the protagonist, written in the form of a manuscript written when she was seventy-one years old. Brutally honest and well-crafted, I found this novel to be deeply impactful. Though the protagonist is not particularly likable, especially in the initial segments of the novel, I thought the author has done a magnificent job of capturing the plight of anti-Nazi Germans, women in particular, during a period of political and social upheaval. The author references several historical incidents and how the same impacted German citizens including Nazi book burnings, Night of the Long Knives, and the construction of the Berlin Wall, rendering this novel an engrossing read despite the slow start. The Author’s Note is well-written and sheds light on the people and events that inspired this story and the creative liberties taken by the author in framing this novel.

Many thanks to Kensington Books for granting me access to the digital review copy via Edelweiss+. All opinions expressed in this review are my own.