Aftermath

The internationally bestselling and prize-winning history of German life in the fallout of the Third Reich, Aftermath by Harald Jähner is a compelling and meticulously researched account of Germany from 1945 to 1955. In the wake of the Second World War, Germany lay in ruins. Cities were reduced to rubble, millions were displaced, and society was in disarray. This period marked a complex and often tumultuous transition as the nation grappled with devastation, moral reckoning, and the gradual steps towards revival.

Jähner’s narrative is filled with eye-opening, shocking, and vitally human stories that reveal the multifaceted nature of post-war German society. Ruth Andreas-Friedrich, a journalist and member of the Nazi resistance, records in her diary the frenzied effort to rebuild life in bombed-out Berlin, where makeshift stoves and desperate hope symbolise a city in flux. Meanwhile, Hans Habe, an Austro-Hungarian Jewish journalist and US army soldier, arrives with the mission of establishing a press capable of transforming German minds and attitudes amid the occupation. Philosopher Hannah Arendt returns to a homeland where the horrors of the Holocaust are palpably present but met with unsettling silence.

The book also explores the broader socio-political landscape, detailing the psychological and physical rebuilding of a nation. Jähner paints a nuanced panorama of a society poised between ruin and recovery, showing how ordinary Germans dealt with their past, aspired for normalcy, and navigated the cultural re-education imposed by the Allied powers.

Aftermath has garnered critical acclaim and numerous accolades:

The Times Top 10 Bestseller

Shortlisted for the Baillie Gifford Prize for Non-Fiction

Shortlisted for the British Academy Book Prize

Shortlisted for the Cundill History Prize

The book was also named a Book of the Year by The Times, Sunday Times, Telegraph, New Statesman, Financial Times, Irish Independent, and Daily Mail.

Critics have praised Aftermath for its depth and insight:

'A masterpiece' – Spectator

'Exemplary and important... This is the kind of book few writers possess the clarity of vision to write' – Max Hastings, Sunday Times

'Magnificent... There are great lessons in the nature of humanity to be learnt here' – Telegraph

The visually engaging book includes black and white photographs and posters from post-war Germany, some beautiful, some revelatory, some shocking, that further illuminate this transformative period. Jähner provides a captivating portrait of a society experiencing the trials of defeat and the challenging path toward a redefined identity. Aftermath is essential reading for anyone interested in the complexities of history, war recovery, and human resilience. It brilliantly captures a decade that was crucial in shaping modern Germany, starkly different from common historical imaginings.