Every Man Dies Alone

Set in early 1940s Nazi Germany, Every Man Dies Alone is a fictionalized account of two working-class anti-Nazi dissenters who, following the death of their son in battle, undertake a postcard-writing campaign as their own small act of resistance. This book seems to be Fallada’s most celebrated achievement, and while it has some depth as it considers the effectiveness of political activism in the face of broad popular support for an objectionable regime, the narrative is unfocused and Fallada’s writing is often careless and flat. (The book is better known internationally under its UK title, Alone in Berlin.)