Hans Hellmut Kirst
1914 - 1989
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Kirst, a veteran of World War II, first gained recognition with his *Gunner Asch* series. Originally published in German as a trilogy – *Band: 08/15 in der Kaserne, 1954*, *Band: 08/15 im Krieg, 1954*, and *Band: 08/15 bis zum Ende, 1955* – and later expanded with *08/15 heute, 1963* and *08/15 in der Partei, 1978*, these novels trace the life of a soldier from the years leading up to World War II, through his experiences on the Eastern Front, and into post-war Germany. The English translations are: *The Revolt of Gunner Asch* [1955], *Forward, Gunner Asch!* [1956] (also published as *Gunner Asch Goes to War*), *The Return of Gunner Asch* [1957], and *What Became of Gunner Asch* [1964].
Like Kirst, Asch held the rank of Lieutenant by the war’s end.
Kirst also wrote novels exploring the corrosive influence of Nazism on Germany and its military. His most famous work is *The Night of the Generals* (originally *Die Nacht der Generale*, 1962), a story centered on the investigation of murders committed during and after the war, and later adapted into a successful 1967 film.
Other significant novels by Kirst set during the Third Reich and World War II include *Officer Factory* (originally *Fabrik der Offiziere*, 1960), which follows an investigation into the death of an officer at a training school near the end of the war, as well as *The Castle*, *Camp Seven Next Stop*, *The Fox of Maulen* (later retitled *The Wolves*), and *The Nights of the Long Knives*, a fictional account of an SS hit squad. All these novels were translated by J Maxwell Brownjohn and are characterized by Kirst’s distinctive combination of dry humor and sharp satire. A recurring theme is characters who vehemently professed Nazi allegiance during the Third Reich, only to equally fervently claim anti-Nazi sentiments – and embrace either pro-democracy or pro-communist ideologies, depending on what suited them – after the regime’s fall.
Beyond his war-themed novels, Kirst wrote *The Seventh Day*, a chillingly realistic nuclear holocaust story that garnered international praise, and *Die letzte Karte spielt der Tod, 1955*, a fictionalized biography of Soviet spy Richard Sorge, published in English as *The Last Card* and *Death Plays the Last Card*.
Kirst also penned a series of detective novels set in 1960s Munich, translated into English as *Damned to Success* (also known as *A Time for Scandal*), *A Time for Truth*, and *Everything has a Price*.
Like Kirst, Asch held the rank of Lieutenant by the war’s end.
Kirst also wrote novels exploring the corrosive influence of Nazism on Germany and its military. His most famous work is *The Night of the Generals* (originally *Die Nacht der Generale*, 1962), a story centered on the investigation of murders committed during and after the war, and later adapted into a successful 1967 film.
Other significant novels by Kirst set during the Third Reich and World War II include *Officer Factory* (originally *Fabrik der Offiziere*, 1960), which follows an investigation into the death of an officer at a training school near the end of the war, as well as *The Castle*, *Camp Seven Next Stop*, *The Fox of Maulen* (later retitled *The Wolves*), and *The Nights of the Long Knives*, a fictional account of an SS hit squad. All these novels were translated by J Maxwell Brownjohn and are characterized by Kirst’s distinctive combination of dry humor and sharp satire. A recurring theme is characters who vehemently professed Nazi allegiance during the Third Reich, only to equally fervently claim anti-Nazi sentiments – and embrace either pro-democracy or pro-communist ideologies, depending on what suited them – after the regime’s fall.
Beyond his war-themed novels, Kirst wrote *The Seventh Day*, a chillingly realistic nuclear holocaust story that garnered international praise, and *Die letzte Karte spielt der Tod, 1955*, a fictionalized biography of Soviet spy Richard Sorge, published in English as *The Last Card* and *Death Plays the Last Card*.
Kirst also penned a series of detective novels set in 1960s Munich, translated into English as *Damned to Success* (also known as *A Time for Scandal*), *A Time for Truth*, and *Everything has a Price*.
Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hans_Hellmut_Kirst