Lit in Translation

The Director

Lichtspiel

Daniel Kehlmann (born 1975)

Translated by Ross Benjamin

English editions

In English

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Shooting a film in France when Hitler comes to power, G. W. Pabst, one of the era's great directors, chooses Hollywood over the new Germany, but in California he counts for little, and not even Greta Garbo, the star he made, can rescue him. Almost by drift he lands back in Austria, now the Reich's Ostmark, where his family soon learns what the regime is. The Reich's propaganda chief wants him and offers much; Pabst tells himself that art alone commands him, while the compromises have already begun.

AI-generated summary

About the book

Form
Novel
Length
470 pages in the original
Genres
Historical, Politics (assigned by AI)
Set in
France, United States, Austria, Germany, 1930s–1940s
First published
2023 by Rowohlt
Author's age
48 when first published
ISBN

9783498003876 (original)

9781668087794 (Summit Books, United States)

9781529435115 (riverrun, United Kingdom)

9781529435153 (riverrun, United Kingdom)

9781668087800 (Summit Books, United States)