They Divided the Sky - (Literary Translation) by Christa Wolf (Paperback)

About the Book

In the new, socialist, East Germany, the relationship of two lovers is tested to the extreme not only because of the political positions they gradually develop but, very concretely, by the Berlin Wall, which went up on August 13, 1961. A Deutsche Welle Top 100 Must-Reads.

Book Synopsis

First published in 1963, in East Germany, Christa Wolf's They Divided the Sky is one of the top 100 Must-Reads (Deutsche Welle).

tells the story of a young couple, living in the new, socialist, East Germany, whose relationship is tested to the extreme not only because of the political positions they gradually develop but, very concretely, by the Berlin Wall, which went up on August 13, 1961.

The story is set in 1960 and 1961, a moment of high political cold war tension between the East Bloc and the West, a time when many thousands of people were leaving the young German Democratic Republic (the GDR) every day in order to seek better lives in West Germany, or escape the political ideology of the new country that promoted the "farmer and peasant" state over a state run by intellectuals or capitalists. The construction of the Wall put an end to this hemorrhaging of human capital, but separated families, friends, and lovers, for thirty years.

The conflicts of the time permeate the relations between characters in the book at every level, and strongly affect the relationships that Rita, the protagonist, has not only with colleagues at work and at the teacher's college she attends, but also with her partner Manfred (an intellectual and academic) and his family. They also lead to an accident/attempted suicide that send her to hospital in a coma, and that provide the backdrop for the flashbacks that make up the narrative.

Wolf's first full-length novel, published when she was thirty-five years old, was both a great literary success and a political scandal. Accused of having a 'decadent' attitude with regard to the new socialist Germany and deliberately misrepresenting the workers who are the foundation of this new state, Wolf survived a wave of political and other attacks after its publication. She went on to create a screenplay from the novel and participate in making the film version. More importantly, she went on to become the best-known East German writer of her generation, a writer who established an international reputation and never stopped working toward improving the socialist reality of the GDR.

Review Quotes

Christa Wolf has created a moving love story, but also a compelling portrayal of East Germany in the early 60s through detailed description of people and landscapes. Her characterisation demonstrates the complexity of human behaviour within the strictures of Communist society at that time, and her talent for storytelling makes the human impact so vividly moving.

https: //peakreads.wordpress.com/2016/09/28/der-geteilte-himmel-they-divided-the-sky-by-christa-wolf/

--Mandy Wight "Peakreads"

Christa Wolf was East Germany's most respected author, both at home, and in the West. They Divided the Sky was a best seller on both sides of the Wall, and it's also the first book ever written about German division.
https: //www.dw.com/en/christa-wolf-they-divided-the-sky/a-45795168

dw.com/100must-reads

--Heike Mund "Deutsche Welle"

In her fascinating introduction, Luise von Flutow, translator of They Divided The Sky, explains the liberties Seven Seas Verlag took with the novel when they first translated it into English in 1965. This included replacing the 1st person narrator with an omniscient, non-critical third, and removing entire sections because they didn't conform with party discipline. This changes the entire tone and feel of Wolf's novel. Note well, therefore, if you choose to read Divided Heaven, translated by Joan Becker, you will be reading a novel substantially different to the one Wolf wrote.

https: //lizzysiddal.wordpress.com/2015/11/10/they-divided-the-sky-christa-wolf/

--Lizzy "Lizzy's Literary Life"

Originally called "Divided Heaven", it has now been reissued as "They Divided the Sky". The difference goes deeper than the title. Luise von Flotow's faithful new rendering replaces a text that had been badly twisted by a zealous editor who was determined to suppress all straying from the party line.

https: //www.economist.com/books-and-arts/2013/07/13/divided-soul

--The Economist "The Economist"

An ardent young socialist convinced of culture's mission to educate, Wolf wrote her first novel in 1963. Originally called "Divided Heaven", it has now been reissued as "They Divided the Sky". The difference goes deeper than the title. Luise von Flotow's faithful new rendering replaces a text that had been badly twisted by a zealous editor who was determined to suppress all straying from the party line. ... The new version introduces in English for the first time the introspective, autobiographical voice that became Wolf's signature and strength. Its fragmented points of view and flashbacks were innovative. From the start her ambition was to honour the inner voice and "bridge the contradiction between party diktat and personal truthfulness", in the words of her biographer, Jörg Magenau. This made her a revered, almost saintly figure to her East German readers; at the same time, her consistently uncertain, questioning tone put her on a collision course with the socialist leadership.-- "PUO-UOP"

About the Author

Christa Wolf was a German literary critic, novelist and essayist. She was one of the best known writers to have emerged from the former East Germany. Der geteilte Himmel was her first full-length novel, published when she was thirty-five years old; it was both a great literary success and a political scandal.

Accused of having a 'decadent' attitude with regard to the new socialist Germany and deliberately misrepresenting the workers who are the foundation of this new state, Wolf survived a wave of political and other attacks after its publication. However, she went on to become the best-known East German writer of her generation, a writer who established an international reputation and never stopped working toward improving the socialist reality of the GDR.

Christa Wolf passed away in December 2011.