When the institute director, Professor Krautmann, suddenly disappears, Georg Grissmann is forced to relinquish his hopes of a career as a local historian. One night, a private detective visits him with startling news: the billionaire William Grissmann is dying in America. Without direct heirs, William has decreed that the first Grissmann to arrive at his side shall inherit his vast fortune. Georg is the first to reach the deathbed and thus becomes the heir to this immense wealth. Upon an unexpected encounter with Krautmann, Georg attempts – using his newfound riche – to turn back time.

A melancholic novel exploring themes of home, loss, and the burdens of unexpected fortune.

Despite – or perhaps because of – its inconsistencies, this anachronistic book is extremely enjoyable and even thrilling to read. It consists solely of arabesques with which the first-person narrator enchants, entwines, and draws the readers down to the level of his indecisiveness, which underlies the text as a poetic aura.

– Hans Christoph Buch, Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung

Further Information

Author: Wolf Christian Schröder

Translated by: Dennis McCort