(Available in English as "The man who planted trees"; Original title: "L`homme qui plantait des arbres")
A very moving and poetic short story about a F(Available in English as "The man who planted trees"; Original title: "L`homme qui plantait des arbres")
A very moving and poetic short story about a French shepherd who over dozens of years and throughout two world wars plants thousands of trees, thus re-vitalizing whole swaths of land and improving the lives of thousands of people. First published in 1953, the text has remained relevant, and it is no wonder that its author Jean Giono declared that this is one of his works that he is particularly proud of: It reflects his love of nature, his pantheistic convictions, and the belief that a single man can make a difference if he puts his heart into it.
The narrative voice is very clear and direct, the text does not require extensive efforts to decipher its meaning and the message can easily be understood by anybody - and from this lyrical simplicity, Giono distills enormous beauty.
Giono's short story was turned into a movie that won the Academy Award for Best Animated Short Film in 1987 (it was the second Oscar for its director Frédéric Back, who was born in my hometown). Many copies of the book come with beautiful illustrations, so look out for one of them....more
My father and I were not born in the same country, but we were born in the same city: Saarbrücken, capital of the Saarland. The last territory to joinMy father and I were not born in the same country, but we were born in the same city: Saarbrücken, capital of the Saarland. The last territory to join West Germany during the Cold War, formerly known as the (French) Saar Protectorate, before that part of the Third Reich, before that known as the Territory of the Saar Basin (governed by the UK and France under a League of Nations mandate) - you get the idea. Due to the state's history and the reverberations of all kinds of historic turmoil, people in Saarland have been known to be particularly attached to their state which, with its charcoal and steel industry, used to be a highly contested area. Today, you will hardly find a Saarländer who refers to the French as "foreigners" - if your tram goes straight to France (border? which border?), you learn French in primary school, and you can meet French people whenever you step out the door, this term simply seems ridiculous.
In his book, Albert H.V. Kraus outlines how the Saarland became what it is today, starting in 1815 (birth date of the German Confederation) and continuing until 2007, when the Saarland celebrated 50 years of being a German federal state. By citing newspapers and contemporary reports, Kraus shows how regular people experienced historic events. I also liked that he adds short biographies of important politicians, entrepreneurs and civil activists who shaped the state's destiny, like Johannes Hoffmann (who fought Hitler and had to flee to Brazil, but later established an authoritarian rule when he became Minister-President of the Saar Protectorate), Senator Richard Becker (an influential businessman who advocated the Saarland's return to Germany after WW II), and Willi Graf (member of the White Rose).
Unfortunately, it really shows that the book is a compilation of articles that Kraus has written independently - many contextual explanations and events are repeated several times, there are no smooth transitions between chapters and the table of content already shows that the build-up lacks stringency. It is also worth mentioning that Kraus aimed to write a book that could be understood by everyone, including rather young people and those who do not have a lot of historic knowledge, and of course he uses his language accordingly.
Nevertheless, this is a worthwhile read for people interested in the history of the state - or European history, as the Saarland's history exemplifies many of the continent's struggles in a nutshell. ...more
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