From Germany to Germany: Diary 1990 - Tapa blanda

"From Germany to Germany contains delightful insights into the process of crafting a novel...the most compelling and enduring evaluation of the complexities of reunification is likely to have come from the pen of Günter Grass the novelist" (Harry de Quetteville Daily Telegraph)

"Though Grass spent much of the year engaged in political argument – with others and with himself – there is much else in the book. It is first the record of a man possessed of extraordinary energy, both physical and mental...One cannot but admire his zest for life" (Allan Massie Scotsman)

"From Germany to Germany is as earthy and real as The Tin Drum" (Carole Angier Literary Review)

"This diary does capture a great moment in time" (Alastair Mabbott Herald)

In 1990, Günter Grass - a reluctant diarist - felt compelled to make a record of the interesting times through which he was living.

Following the fall of the Berlin Wall in November 1989 and the collapse of Communism, Germany and Europe were enduring a period of immense upheaval. Grass resolved to immerse himself in these political debates: he travelled widely throughout both Germanys, the former East and the former West, conducting a lively exchange with political enemies, friends and his own children about all the questions posed by reunification.

His account gives the reader an unparalleled insight into a key moment in the life of modern Europe, seen through the eyes of one of its most acclaimed writers. It also provides a startling insight into the creative process as the reader witnesses ideas for novels occurring and then taking shape.

From Germany to Germany is both a personal journal by a great creative artist and a penetrating commentary on recent European history by someone who was simultaneously an acute observer and a highly engaged participant.