Reviews

Iron Gustav: A Berlin Family Chronicle by Hans Fallada

jonasvogler's review against another edition

adventurous emotional reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

kingarooski's review

4.0

"...But nothing had remained. It was as if a child had made marks in the same: the dew obscured them, the wind blew the sand away,rain washed the marks away. Nothing remained."

Iron Gustav follows Gustav Hackendahl and his family over 20 years or so, showing the changes and challenges that faced Germans in the early part of last century. This book was a bit of a marathon, but the characters were well constructed and their experiences made me want to read on.

athos's review

I love Hans Fallada's books but I lost interest in this one about half way through. The first half was really great, but I think because this new edition has re-inserted all the parts removed by Goebells during Nazi censorship, it drags on with not a lot happening. Although this is the most complete version of Fallada's pre-censorship novel, it also loses any conciseness. 

sundaysunshine's review

dark emotional funny reflective sad slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

caroline1976's review

emotional informative reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

drdoo's review against another edition

emotional informative reflective sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

emmamacdonald's review

5.0

“‘I don’t know if we’re rotten or not. Perhaps the times in which we lived were rotten too, and it infected us. Can’t something that’s healthy also be infected by a rotten environment?’”

kovalyov's review against another edition

adventurous dark reflective sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

aeonidon's review against another edition

emotional reflective sad slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

nathaneal's review against another edition

informative reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0