In Times of Fading Light

De: Eugen Ruge

Narrado por: Simon Vance

In Times of Fading Light begins in September 2001 as Alexander Umnitzer, who has just been diagnosed with terminal cancer, leaves behind his ailing father to fly to Mexico, where his grandparents lived as exiles in the 1940s. The novel then takes us both forward and back in time, creating a panoramic view of the family’s history: from Alexander’s grandparents’ return to the GDR to build the socialist state, to his father’s decade spent in a gulag for criticizing the Soviet regime, to his son’s desire to leave the political struggles of the twentieth century in the past.

With wisdom, humor, and great empathy, Eugen Ruge draws on his own family history as he masterfully brings to life the tragic intertwining of politics, love, and family under the East German regime.

©2011 Original material © 2011 Rowohlt Verlag GmbH, Reinbeck bei Hamburg. Translation © 2013 Anthea Bell. Recorded by arrangement with Graywolf Press. (P)2013 (p) 2013 HighBridge Company.

Reseñas de la Crítica

"Combining dense, full-bodied storytelling with an enlightening sense of modern history." ( Publishers Weekly)

"Ruge takes full advantage of the varying viewpoints to display, impressively, the density of family." ( Kirkus Reviews)

"A deeply plaintive examination of personal and political tragedy." ( Booklist [HC starred review])