Beyond the Wall

East Germany, 1949-1990

De: Katja Hoyer

Narrado por: Sam Peter Jackson

Brought to you by Penguin.

Longlisted for The Baillie Gifford Prize for Non-Fiction 2023.

The definitive new history of East Germany by an acclaimed historian

In 1990, a country disappeared. For the previous forty-one years, East Germany had existed in Western minds as more of a metaphor than a place, more of a grey communist blur than a land of real people with friends and families, workplaces and homes. As Germany once again became a single state, the history of the GDR was simplified and politicised. It was nothing but Stasi spies and central planning, nothing but a wall in Berlin.

In Beyond the Wall, acclaimed historian Katja Hoyer looks past these outdated conceptions and toward a more comprehensive history, one that acknowledges border guards, secret police and brutal repression, as well as comprehensive welfare, unprecedented gender equality, and the deconstruction of class privilege. There were those who were silenced, she argues, and also those who felt they had been given a voice for the first time. Both deserve to be heard today.

Based on first-hand accounts and extensive new research, Hoyer presents the history of the GDR as never before—as a kaleidoscope of perspectives, experiences and stories. From the ashes of the Second World War to the fall of the USSR, this is the definitive story of the other Germany, the one beyond the Wall.

©2023 Katja Hoyer (P)2023 Penguin Audio

A fascinating look into East Germany

I found the book to be a really interesting look into East Germany, a country which I only knew about at a very surface level. The way the author took the experiences and accounts of East Germans of all kinds and wove them into the book was a great way of contextualising events and had the added effect of making the book very engaging to listen to.

The narration is also excellent and never once distracted me from the book.

Fantastic book on East Germany

Loved this book! Highly recommended if you’re into WWII History and Germany. It has definitely broadened my understanding of GDR and FRG.

Captivating!

Surprising insights in a history we're still living in today - recommend listen / read.

Maravilloso

Completo y pedagógico , bien escrito y mejor leído Es un libro a recomendar para todos los interesados en la rda

good book, but...

good book. only one comment: Merkel is projected in this book rather positive, while we know that she's a putin appeaser and for a part responsible for the war in Ukraine. Ib some sense she's a russian asset, and not good for democracy.

readible, well narrated and to the point.

katja Hoyer has a great talent for making history understandable, while keeping nuance.
The book does leave you wanting to know more about the political history of this state and how it influenced peoples lives, but that's not neccesariily a weakness.