Ben Fergusson Knihy

A story of adoption, queer parenting and gender expectations around family roles.

"For eighteen-year-old Ralf living in West Berlin, the summer of 1989 opens up a whole new world. He and his three best friends have finished school for ever and are living in a golden few months before the next stage of their adult life begins. But the old tensions of East and West come closer to home when Ralf makes some unsettling discoveries about his mother, alongside confronting his own sexuality. Forced to make choices about which side he is on, Ralf becomes caught up in a web of lies, deceit and confusion. Who can he really trust?"--Provided by publisher.

'A book to love and cherish' Deborah Levy, author of The Cost of Living 'A beautiful writer and, just as important, a beautiful thinker' Hanya Yanagihara, author of A Little Life 'Friendship is, in fact, as much the topic of this book as aloneness' Sarah Bakewell, Guardian At no time before have so many people lived alone, and never has loneliness been so widely or keenly felt. Why, in a society of individualists, is living alone perceived as a shameful failure? And can we ever be happy on our own? 'A heartfelt memoir on being single, living alone and the existential experience of loneliness' Financial Times 'Romantic love, suggests the author, is the lone "grand narrative" to have survived seismic societal shifts in modern times . . . Hermits and intimacy, the taboo of loneliness and the consolation of friendship - all find their place in a meditation that nods to joy and adversity' Observer

Set in post-war Berlin in 1946, a city ravaged by conflict and scarcity, the story follows Kasper Meier, who resorts to black market trading to survive alongside his elderly father. The war may be over, but the struggle for basic necessities continues. When a young woman named Eva seeks Kasper's help to locate a British pilot, he feels a reluctant sympathy but initially refuses to get involved in military matters. However, Eva is determined and knows Kasper's secrets, using them to manipulate him into assisting her. As threats against him escalate, Kasper finds himself entangled in a web of intrigue that he never anticipated. He grapples with questions about Eva's insistence on finding the pilot and the enigmatic Frau Beckmann's influence over her. Under constant surveillance, Kasper navigates the perilous streets of a city still haunted by its past. As he uncovers connections between the random killings of occupying forces and his own predicament, he realizes he must uncover the truth behind Eva's demands while striving to protect himself, his father, and Eva from the dangers that surround them.

A fascinating look at racism and snobbery. Broken postwar Germany is superbly drawn and events in Africa are horrific The Times