The Undercurrents

The Undercurrents: A Story of Berlin is a captivating blend of biography, memoir, and cultural criticism that explores the history of a nineteenth-century house on Berlin's Landwehr Canal and the lives of its inhabitants, drawing on accounts by Walter Benjamin, Rosa Luxemburg, and Gabriele Tergit, as well as the works of Theodor Fontane, Irmgard Keun, and Rainer Werner Fassbinder. It offers a fresh perspective on the city by recovering forgotten stories and advocating for radical close readings of ourselves, our cities, and our histories.

Format: Paperback / softback
Length: 312 pages
Publication date: 09 March 2022
Publisher: Fitzcarraldo Editions

The Undercurrents: A Story of Berlin is a captivating blend of biography, memoir, and cultural critique, presented from a singular vantage point: a stately nineteenth-century house situated along Berlins Landwehr Canal, a location that has witnessed profound historical transformations, as well as smaller domestic shifts. Amidst the dissolution of her marriage, Kirsty Bell, a British-American writer in her mid-forties, finds herself adrift and becomes deeply engrossed in the history of her building and her adoptive city. From the confines of her apartment window, she embarks on a journey that explores the lives of the diverse inhabitants, delves into accounts written by Walter Benjamin, Rosa Luxemburg, and Gabriele Tergit, and delves into the female protagonists portrayed in the works of Theodor Fontane, Irmgard Keun, and Rainer Werner Fassbinder. As a result, a new cultural topography of Berlin emerges, one that harnesses vibrant undercurrents to uncover untold or forgotten stories beneath the citys familiar narratives. The Undercurrents is a humane, thought-provoking, and emotionally resonant work that serves as a hybrid literary portrait of a place that advocates for radical close readings: of ourselves, our cities, and our histories.

Weight: 352g
Dimension: 128 x 196 x 28 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781913097899