Heinrich Böll, Billard um halbzehn [Billiards at Half-past Nine]

Hannelore G. Mundt (University of Wyoming)
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Inspired by reports of the execution of four young communists in Cologne in 1933, Heinrich Böll wrote his first internationally renowned novel

Billard um halbzehn

[

Billiards at Half-past Nine

, 1959]. 1959 marked the tenth anniversary of the Federal Republic of Germany (West Germany), and heralded the German people’s renewed confidence in the future: under the helm of conservative chancellor Konrad Adenauer, Germay had become a member of the European Economic Union and of NATO, and the

Wirtschaftswunder

(economic miracle) brought prosperity and political stability to the nation that had recently regained its former international recognition. The decade also witnessed a re-emerging national pride, made possible by a remarkable German blindness and indifference toward the Nazi past and…

2298 words

Citation: Mundt, Hannelore G.. "Billard um halbzehn". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 14 February 2007 [https://www.litencyc.com/php/sworks.php?rec=true&UID=11632, accessed 19 March 2024.]

11632 Billard um halbzehn 3 Historical context notes are intended to give basic and preliminary information on a topic. In some cases they will be expanded into longer entries as the Literary Encyclopedia evolves.

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