A Small Circus
| Author | Hans Fallada |
|---|---|
| Original title | Bauern, Bonzen und Bomben |
| Translator | Michael Hofmann |
| Language | German |
| Publisher | Vier Falken |
Publication date | 1931 |
| Publication place | Germany |
Published in English | 2012 |
| Pages | 622 |
A Small Circus (German: Bauern, Bonzen und Bomben, lit. 'Farmers, Bigwigs and Bombs') is a 1931 novel by the German writer Hans Fallada.
Plot
[edit]The novel depicts tensions in a German small town in the summer of 1929. It covers opportunistic local journalism, farmers plotting violence, street fighting between communists and nationalists, and a corrupt mayor. It was partially inspired by Fallada's experience as a newspaper journalist and the history of the Rural People's Movement.[1][2]
Reception
[edit]The novel was Fallada's first serious critical success. Those who praised it upon the original publication included Hermann Hesse, Robert Musil and Joseph Goebbels. In 2012, Ben Hutchinson of The Guardian wrote that it "vividly depicts the provincial politics and internecine squabbling of the Weimar republic", making it a more representative example of Fallada's works than Every Man Dies Alone (1947), which later became his internationally most famous novel.[3]
Adaptation
[edit]The novel was the basis for the television serial Bauern, Bonzen und Bomben, broadcast in five episodes on ARD in 1973.[4]
References
[edit]- ^ "A Small Circus". Kirkus Reviews. Retrieved 17 July 2025.
- ^ "A Small Circus, By Hans Fallada, trans. Michael Hofmann". The Independent. Retrieved 17 July 2025.
- ^ Hutchinson, Ben (4 March 2012). "A Small Circus by Hans Fallada – review". The Guardian. Retrieved 17 July 2025.
- ^ "Bauern, Bonzen und Bomben". Filmportal.de. Retrieved 17 July 2025.