Time Passes
About This Novel
A Berliner lived an orderly life until one day he suddenly broke into a group of strangers. They spoke a mixed and broken language and traveled across the sea from war-torn Africa to Germany. The early experience of World War II made Berliners value order extremely, and "there is no freedom in chaos." However, as a citizen of the former East Germany, the memory of the Berlin Wall has never been far away, and living an immigrant life in his own country is not an unfamiliar experience - thirty years ago, his country and its future disappeared overnight. By a strange combination of circumstances, he became friends with the refugees, learned about their troubled past, and became deeply involved in their stories. "Only if they survive in Germany today does it mean that Hitler has truly been defeated." In an era of drastic changes, the destiny of mankind is related to each other as never before. When war creates volcanoes on the earth, when huge despair overflows the sea of anger, people also erect high walls on all sides. But is it really possible for peace to exist alone? "The Passing of Time" is a story of encounter with the other: to what extent can humans understand each other's suffering and share peace? Erpenbeck confronts the core moral issues of our time, "intervenes in European issues of race, immigration, nationalism and identity in a literary form, and provides a powerful response to the current deepening crises" (Booker Prize Jury).
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