Heinrich Böll 1917 - 1985Heinrich Böll is one of the most
important and best-known writers of the Federal Republic of
Germany. "Bound by the times and my contemporaries, to what my
generation has lived through, experienced, seen, and heard," as
he himself wrote, he was the critical chronicler of Germany’s
history at mid-century. He was awarded the Nobel Prize for
Literature for his novels and short stories in 1972. His
courageous and unerring intervention significantly enriched and
influenced political culture in Germany. Throughout his life,
Heinrich Böll transcended all ideological boundaries in his
committed support of persecuted colleagues, civil rights
activists, and political prisoners; this once earned him the
mocking title of "Warden of the Dissident Wayfarers" in an East
German magazine. His global commitment to human rights greatly
enhanced the image of the Federal Republic of Germany and
fostered international understanding. His books and essays
vividly portray the first 40 years of German democrac