Uwe Wittstock is a journalist, critic and author who lives in Germany. He was awarded the prestigious Theodor Wolff prize for journalism in 1989.

Acknowledgements
 
List of Illustrations
 
Stepping off the Cliff * The month in which the die was cast
 
The Republic's Last Dance * Saturday, 28 January
 
Hell Reigns * Monday, 30 January
 
Axes at the Door * Tuesday, 31 January
 
Inferior Foreign-Blooded Trash * Thursday, 2 February
 
Tongue-Tied * Friday, 3 February
 
Not Sure What to Do * Saturday, 4 February
 
Burial in the Rain * Sunday, 5 February
 
Meeting Routine * Monday, 6 February
 
Hideous, Violent Little Characters * Friday, 10 February
 
Schutzstaffel for Writers * Sunday, 12 February
 
Men in Black * Monday, 13 February
 
Fever and Flight * Tuesday, 14 February
 
Slamming the Door * Wednesday, 15 February
 
The Little Schoolteacher * Thursday, 16 February
 
I'm Leaving. I'm Staying * Friday, 17 February
 
No Treasure in the Silver Lake * Saturday, 18 February
 
What's the Point of Writing? * Sunday, 19 February
 
Pay up! * Monday, 20 February
 
Pretty Good Cover * Tuesday, 21 February
 
Surviving the Coming Weeks * Wednesday, 22 February
 
A Minister in the Audience * Friday, 24 February
 
Civil War Tribunal and Police Protection * Saturday, 25 February
 
Travel Advice * Monday, 27 February
 
Dictatorship Is Here * Tuesday, 28 February
 
Fading from the World * Wednesday, 1 March
 
The Fake Mother * Friday, 3 March
 
Don't Open the Door! * Saturday, 4 March
 
Casting a Ballot * Sunday, 5 March
 
The Emigrant's Solitude * Monday, 6 March
 
Courage, Fear, and Fire * Tuesday, 7 March
 
Nothing but Goodbyes * Wednesday, 8 March
 
Unexpected Attacks * Friday, 10 March
 
Final Days * Saturday, 11 March
 
Departures * Monday, 13 March
 
The Sight of This Hell * Wednesday, 15 March
 
What Happened Afterward * 33 Life Sketches
 
Afterword
 
Bibliography
 
Index

It all happened in a flash. February 1933 was the month in which the fate of German writers, as for so many others, was decided. In a tensely spun narrative, Uwe Wittstock tells the story of a demise which was predicted by some but also scarcely thought possible. He reveals how, in a matter of weeks, the glittering Weimar literary scene gave way to a long, dark winter, and how the net drew ever closer for Thomas Mann, Bertolt Brecht, Else Lasker-Schüler, Alfred Döblin, and countless others.
 
Monday, January 30: Adolf Hitler is sworn in as Chancellor of Germany. Joseph Roth cannot wait any longer to learn what today's paper will report. He leaves for the station early in the morning and takes the train to Paris; bidding Berlin farewell comes naturally to him. Meanwhile, Thomas Mann barely spares a thought for politics during the next ten days, focusing instead on his forthcoming speech on Richard Wagner.
 
Weaving an intimate portrait of the major figures whose lives he follows day by day, Wittstock shows how the landslide of events which immediately followed Hitler's victory spelled disaster for the country's literary elite. He resurrects the atmosphere of the times, marked by anxiety for many, by passivity and self-betrayal for some, and by grim determination for others. Who will applaud the new dictator, and who will flee, fearing for their life?
 
Drawing on unpublished archival material, this important work is both a meticulous historical narrative and a timely reminder that we must remain vigilant in the face of the forces that threaten democracy, however distant the prospect of totalitarianism may seem.