Edgar Hilsenrath facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Edgar Hilsenrath
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Hilsenrath signing books at his 80th birthday celebration (Berlin 2006)
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| Born | April 2, 1926 Leipzig, Saxony, Germany |
| Died | December 30, 2018 (aged 92) Wittlich |
| Occupation | Novelist |
| Notable awards | State Award in Literature of the Republic of Armenia, Alfred Döblin Prize, Heinz Galinski Prize, Hans Erich Nossack Prize, Jakob Wassermann Literature Prize, Hans Sahl Prize, Lion Feuchtwanger Prize |
Edgar Hilsenrath (born April 2, 1926 – died December 30, 2018) was a German-Jewish writer. He was a Holocaust survivor, meaning he lived through the terrible events of the Holocaust. He wrote many fictional books that showed a very real picture of the Holocaust. These stories were partly based on his own experiences in a Nazi camp.
His most famous books are Night, The Nazi and the Barber, and The Story of the Last Thought. After escaping Nazi Germany in 1944, he lived in Palestine and France. Then, in 1951, he moved to New York City in the United States. He lived there for 24 years and published his first novels. Even though he became a citizen of the United States, he decided to move back to Germany in 1975. He lived there until he passed away in 2018.
About Edgar Hilsenrath's Life
Edgar Hilsenrath was born in Leipzig, Germany, and grew up in Halle. His father, David Hilsenrath, worked with furs, and his mother was Anna Hilsenrath. In 1938, his father went to France to escape danger. His mother took Edgar and his sibling to Siret in Romania, where her parents lived.
Edgar was the only Jewish student at his school there. He faced difficulties and had to move to a different school. In 1941, he and his mother were forced into a ghetto in Mohyliv-Podilskyi. A ghetto was a part of a city where Jewish people were forced to live, often in very crowded and difficult conditions. This area was called "Transnistria" at the time.
In 1944, the Red Army freed the ghetto. To avoid being forced into the Russian Army, Edgar used fake papers to get on a refugee train. This train took him to Mandatory Palestine, which is now Israel. There, he found work at a kibbutz. A kibbutz is a special type of community farm. He worked there for almost three years and got sick with malaria.
In 1947, Hilsenrath was able to join his family again in France. While living in Paris, he started writing about his experiences during the Holocaust. In 1951, he moved to New York City. He worked as a waiter and a porter to support himself while writing his stories. He became a citizen of the United States and lived in New York City for 24 years. In 1975, he returned to Germany. He stayed there until he died in 2018 in Wittlich, Germany.
His Important Books
One of Hilsenrath's books, Night, tells the story of life and survival in a Jewish ghetto in Romania.
Another famous novel is The Nazi and the Barber, published in 1971 in the U.S. This book tells the story of a former German SS officer. This officer committed terrible acts during the Holocaust. Later, he pretends to be Jewish and escapes to Israel. The book explores difficult themes through his story.
Awards and Recognition
Edgar Hilsenrath received many awards for his writing. For his novel The Story of the Last Thought, he received the State Award in Literature of the Republic of Armenia. This book was about a historical event where many Armenians lost their lives. The president of Armenia gave him this important award.
See also
In Spanish: Edgar Hilsenrath para niños
