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Love in Five Acts

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( 6,459 ratings, 537 reviews)
Book Hero Magic crafted this summary to help describe this book. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! Summary
Love in Five Acts by Daniela Krien explores the interconnected lives of five women in contemporary Germany, each grappling with love, friendship, and personal fulfilment. As they navigate various life challenges, from career struggles to family dynamics and romantic entanglements, their distinct stories weave together to form a rich tapestry of resilience and connection. This introspective narrative delves into the complexity of relationships and the ever-present quest for happiness.
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Format: Paperback / softback
$2799
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Book Hero Magic created this recommendation. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! IS THIS YOUR NEXT READ?

This book may appeal to you if you enjoy stories that explore the complexities of relationships through the interconnected lives of five women in contemporary Germany. Each character navigates love, loss, and longing, offering a poignant glimpse into their personal struggles and desires. If you appreciate character-driven narratives that delve into human emotions and connections, this might be a captivating read for you.

Book Hero thinking about your next read

Five women attempt the impossible - to love, to be strong, and to stay true to themselves - for readers of Conversations with Friends and An American Marriage

Book Hero Magic formatted this description to make it easier to read. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! Description
"Highly recommended" Sunday Times "Utterly captivating" Woman and Home "Sympathetic and clear-eyed" Financial Times Summer Reads of 2021 "Unfailingly impressive" Irish Times "Sparse and precise" Telegraph "A beautiful novel of what it is to be a woman in modern Europe" New European "An intelligent study of female desire, ambition and frailty" Observer

Bookseller Paula has lost a child, and a husband. Where will she find her happiness? Fiercely independent Judith thinks more of horses than men, but that doesn't stop her looking for love online. Brida is a writer with no time to write, until she faces a choice between her work and her family. Abandoned by the "perfect" man, Malika struggles for recognition from her parents. Her sister Jorinde, an actor, is pregnant for a third time, but how can she provide for her family alone?

Love in Five Acts explores what is left to five women when they have fulfilled their roles as wives, mothers, friends, lovers, sisters, and daughters. As teenagers, they experienced the fall of the Berlin Wall, but freedom brings with it another form of pressure: the pressure of choice.

Punchy and entirely of the moment, Love in Five Acts engages head-on with what it is to be a woman in the twenty-first century.

Translated from the German by Jamie Bulloch

Book Hero Magic summarised reviews for this book. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! HOW HAS THIS BEEN REVIEWED?

Love in Five Acts by Daniela Krien earns high praise for its insightful exploration of the lives of five distinct women, marked by impressive narrative detail and understated humour. The writing, both in its original German and translation, is noted for its sparse yet nuanced style, skillfully capturing complex emotions and everyday challenges. Reviewers highlight the book's intimate portrayal of female desire and ambition, often with a darkly humorous edge, making it both an entertaining and thought-provoking read.

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Book Details

INFORMATION

ISBN: 9781529406405

Publisher: Quercus Publishing

Format: Paperback / softback

Date Published: 28 April 2022

Country: United Kingdom

Imprint: MacLehose Press

Contributors:

  • Translated by Jamie Bulloch
  • Translated by Jamie Bulloch

Audience: General / adult

DIMENSIONS

Spine width: 152.0mm

Width: 264.0mm

Height: 428.0mm

Weight: 185g

Pages: 256

About the Author

Daniela Krien was born in 1975 in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, then in the G.D.R. Her first novel, Someday We'll Tell Each Other Everything, was published in English in 2013 (MacLehose Press) and in fourteen other languages. For a subsequent volume of short stories, Muldental, she was awarded the Nicolaus Born Prize. Love in Five Acts has been sold for translation into twenty languages. She lives in Leipzig with her two daughters.

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