The novel is told in past and present, and the voices of two characters, ruth and ernst. The gripping first novel by anna funder, the acclaimed author of stasiland, based on a true story. Ernst toller, the leftwing activist playwright is discussing with w. All that i am by anna funder website facebook is a very good book, well written and interesting. All that i am book club notes share this based on the stories of real people and events, anna funder s all that i am is a masterful and exhilarating exploration of bravery and betrayal, of the risks and sacrifices some people make for their beliefs. However, this is a profound book which i found that i liked a lot more after i.
Im not sure it matters if you read this novel as pure fiction or fictionalised biography. When hitler comes to power in 1933, a tightknit group of friends and lovers become hunted outlaws overnight. Her first book, the nonfiction stasiland, was groundbreaking in both form and content. About this title may belong to another edition of this title. It follows characters affected by the nazi regime in prewar germany and britain. A nna funders first book, stasiland, was a work of great originality and interest.
Auden the poet his reluctance to write about dora fabian in his autobiography. All that i am is a book i had been eagerly awaiting as soon as i found out the author would be releasing her first novel. All that i am is australian novelist anna funder s first fictional work. This is good storytelling, perhaps, but it is a long way from the stringent truthfulness that motivated every line of funder s first book. One september morning, elderly ruth wesemann wakes to the sound of a. There is a slippage in funders account of her book as she writes. Published in 2003, stasiland is a literary nonfiction book about the german democratic republic, its citizens and its internal state security service, the stasi. Funder colors the relationships of the activists as she describes in amazing detail, the historical events under which they lived. Anna funder lives in brooklyn, new york, with her husband and children. A brilliant narrativeevery part beautifully rendered and balancedit works as a gripping spy novel funder s prose raises the book to a different levelthis book is a wonder. Anna funder s international bestseller, stasiland, won the samuel johnson prize for nonfiction.
It follows characters affected by the nazi regime in prewar germany and britain the book was first published in 2011 by penguin books. Aug 29, 2011 anna funder s all that i am is a work that is inspired by fact and is drawn from interviews and published works of the lives of a group of jewish germans who actively resisted the rise of adolf as an author of nonfiction, it is frustrating when my work is compared unfavourably with a work of fiction on the same subject. She is the author of stasiland and all that i am and the novella the girl with the dogs. At 370 pages, its a solid read that ribbons through an inbetweenthebigwars time, when lines were blurred between friend and foe. Funder s 2012 novel all that i am tells the previously untold story of four germanjewish antihitler activists forced to flee to london. Having visited berlin in 1987 and 1995, her book on the east germany secret police before and after the wall piqued my interest. She allows exstasi operatives an equal chance to reflect on. Wed love you to buy this book, and hope you find this page convenient in locating a place of purchase. It is the authors first novel, but her name had been established by the nonfiction hit stasiland 2003. Neuware anna funder, winner of the samuel johnson prize and author of stasiland, offers a thrilling tale and powerful love story that tells the heroic and tragic true story of the german resistance in world war ii in all that i am. There is a slippage in funder s account of her book as she writes.
The unabridged, downloadable audiobook edition of anna funder s all that i am, a powerful love story that tells the heroic and tragic true story of the german resistance. Toller features as a character in funder s much anticipated book. Buy all that i am by anna funder, paperback format, from the dymocks online bookstore. An account of life in the former german democratic republic, it sought to delineate individual and national states of being in the wake of the trauma of totalitarianism, and particularly to inquire into the mental state. May 03, 2018 all that i am is anna funder s debut novel.
Anna funder s exquisitely written novel, all that i am, about german jewish refugees trying to raise the alarm about hitler to a maddeningly unreceptive britain in the early 30s, resonates with particular intensity during the current coronavirus scare, which is all the more frightening for there being no safe harbor from the virus reach. This is a very wellwritten story of betrayal, bravery and its shameful opposite, cowardice. Jul 22, 2019 all that i am proved perfect for reading by the campfire at night. Funders title, all that i am, echoes tollers autobiography, i was a german, and primo levis account of his imprisonment in auschwitz, if this is a man. History has a nasty habit of repeating itself as is evident with what is. All that i am by anna funder 9780143567516 dymocks. Anna funder, winner of the samuel johnson prize and author of stasiland, offers a thrilling tale and powerful love story that tells the heroic and tragic true story of the german resistance in world war ii in all that i am when hitler comes to power in 1933, a tightknit group of friends and lovers become hunted outlaws overnight. She invokes that permissive, sophisticated era of erlin between the wars with the same frenetic pace of hristopher isherwood.
Funder went to primary school in melbourne and paris. Take a look at our reading group questions and notes and make your next book club discussion one to remember. Funder s political and moral intelligence shine even more brightly than in stasiland. It evokes books like irene nemirovskys suite francaise, bernard schlinks the reader and william boyds restless intelligent, powerful novels that appeal to a wide audience. All that i am book club notes penguin books australia. In 2012 the miles franklin award went to anna funders all that i am. All that i am is about a group of german my story is reconstructed from fossil fragments, much as you might draw skin and feathers over an assembly of dinosaur bones, to fully see the beast. All that i am was published to critical and popular acclaim in the uk where it was both bbc book of the week and book at bedtime and australia where it has spent nine months on the bestseller list, twice at no. Awardwinning australian author anna funder discussed her 2003 bestseller stasiland on the better reading podcast in february 2019. Her debut novel, all that i am, has won many prizes, including the prestigious miles franklin literary award. All that i am, winner of the miles franklin literary award. All that i am is the heartbreaking story of these extraordinary people, who discover that hitlers reach extends much further than they had thought. All that i am by anna funder reading guidebook club. A book that should be on all senior school must read lists.
All that i am, is moving and beautifully written, equal parts a love story, thriller and testament to individual heroism. All that i am by anna funder, 9780062077578, download free ebooks, download free pdf epub ebook. Aug 29, 2011 anna funder is one of australias most acclaimed and celebrated writers. In her debut novel, the australian writer anna funder weaves together fact and fiction to produce a compelling and moving portrait of the struggle against nazi oppression. This achingly beautiful novel is anything but chick lit. What does a fictional narrative offer a reader and writer that pure history does not. It was the first book to reveal the true horrors perpetrated by.
The novel oscillates between toller and ruth, who describe their relationship with dora, the heroine. To have claimed a prize of such stature would suggest that the novel had weathered a robust critical reception. A novel 9780062077578 by funder, anna and a great selection of similar new, used and collectible books available now at great prices. Dont be fooled by the cover of anna funder s all that i am. Jun 21, 2012 to whittle down all that i am and give it a value.
Most characters names are their true names, others have been changed. Raimond gaita, books of the year, the weekend australian a sweeping first. In an imagined novel about true events, acclaimed author, anna funder, has presented a visual of. All that i am by anna funder book club discussion questions.
What do these different viewpoints add to the telling. Based on the stories of real people and events, anna funder s all that i am is a masterful and exhilarating exploration of bravery and betrayal, of the risks and sacrifices some people make for their beliefs, and of heroism hidden in the most unexpected places. All that i am by anna funder when eighteenyearold ruth becker visits her cousin dora in munich in 1923, she meets the love of her life, the dashing young journalist hans wesemann, and eagerly joins in the heady activities of the militant political left in germany. May 30, 2016 all that i am book club notes share this based on the stories of real people and events, anna funders all that i am is a masterful and exhilarating exploration of bravery and betrayal, of the risks and sacrifices some people make for their beliefs, and of heroism hidden in the most unexpected places. Her multiaward winning novel all that i am was an homage to four extraordinary german antihitler activists in exile in london in the 1930s. May 10, 2012 anna funder, winner of the samuel johnson prize and author of stasiland, offers a thrilling tale and powerful love story that tells the heroic and tragic true story of the german resistance in world war ii in all that i am. If you are the publisher or author of this book and feel that the. Anna funder explores, in the most humane and sensitive way, lives blighted by the east german stasi. Buy a cheap copy of all that i am book by anna funder.
Gripping, compassionate, and inspiring, this remarkable debut novel reveals an uncommon depth of humanity and wisdom. In all that i am, anna funder delivers a sweeping first novel that covers love and war, friendship and betrayal, and the bonds that define a life. It evokes books like irene nemirovskys suite francaise, bernard schlinks the reader and william boyds restless intelligent, powerful novels that appeal to a. It won the miles franklin prize, spent over one and a half years on the bestseller list, and is being made into a. At the end of all that i am the protagonist ruth muses. From anna funder, the author of stasiland, a thriller and a powerful love story that tells the heroic and tragic true story of the german resistance. In 2012 the miles franklin award went to anna funder s all that i am. A brilliant narrativeevery part beautifully rendered and balancedit works as a gripping spy novelfunders prose raises the book to a different levelthis book is a wonder. The current generation needs to know of what happened in the past and take lessons warning from it.
All that i am is a novel is based on real peoples lives. Awardwinning author anna funder delivers an affecting and. Anna funder is an australian writer who grew up in melbourne. It follows the writers exploits across east germany after she places an advertisement in the personal columns of a. Anna funders international bestseller, stasiland, won the samuel johnson prize for nonfiction. Anna funder, as one of her characters in her debut novel all that i am, makes a cunning observation about authors using people that they know in their writing. I am currently reading my way through funder s first book, her non fiction work, stasiland, and i am completely absorbed by her writing. Funder cleverly chooses two alternating narrative points of view from within the ranks of. Based on reallife events and people, all that i am brings to light the heroic, tragic, and true story of a small group of leftwing german social activists who mounted a fierce and cunning resistance from their perilous london exile, in a novel that fans of suite francaise, the piano teacher, and atonement will find irresistible and unforgettable. One september morning, elderly ruth wesemann wakes to the sound of a parcel being delivered to her door. Book is sometimes difficult to read but it is well written. A thrilling tale and powerful love story that tells the heroic and tragic true story of the german resistance in world war ii. And for sneaking off for a quiet read beside a creek towards the end of my campervan holiday.
More aptly, its about the people who suffered at the hands of the stasi and those that worked within its ranks. Anna funder, winner of the samuel johnson prize and author of stasiland, offers a thrilling tale and powerful love story that tells the heroic and tragic true story of the german resistance in world war ii in all that i am. We meet him holed up in a new york hotel in 1939, increasingly despairing of shaking the united states out of its apathy about the nazi threat. It won the miles franklin prize, spent over one and a half years on the bestseller list, and is being made into a feature film. All that i am, by anna funder anz litlovers litblog. All that i am by anna funder penguin books australia. This is good storytelling, perhaps, but it is a long way from the stringent truthfulness that motivated every line of funders first book. It was released february 2012 in the usa and italy and other countries around the world to follow. That being said, it took me a while to get into it and, for me, a bit confusing and distracting. The book was first published in 2011 by penguin books. Anna funder is one of australias most acclaimed and celebrated writers. Wesemann was an unsung hero of the resistance movement. All that i am is a fictionalisation of the lives of ruth wesemann and ernst toller, dissident germans who fled soon after the nazis came to power. She is the author of stasiland and all that i am and the novella the girl with the dogs life.
Awardwinning author anna funder delivers an affecting and beautifully evocative debut novel about a group of young german exiles who risk their lives to awaken the. One must read carefully for funder moves in and out of past and present with a slippery ease. All that i am, anna funder by thewanderingjew see profile 12. Sep 01, 2011 from anna funder, the author of stasiland, a thriller and a powerful love story that tells the heroic and tragic true story of the german resistance. I highly recommend anna funders book wherever you read it. All that i am is moving and beautifully written, equal parts love story, thriller and testament to individual heroism. Stories from behind the berlin wall, which has been published in twenty countries and translated into sixteen languages. United in their resistance to the madness and tyranny of nazism. In this episode of off the page, carol george talks to anna funder, author of stasiland about her new novel all that i am.