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Meet Oskar Matzerath, "the eternal three-year-old drummer." On the morning of his third birthday, dressed in a striped pullover and patent leather shoes, and clutching his drumsticks and his new tin drum, young Oskar makes an irrevocable decision: "It was then that I declared, resolved, and determined that I would never under any circumstances be a politician, much less a grocer; that I would stop right there, remain as I was--and so I did; for many years I not only stayed the same size but clung to the same attire." Here is a Peter Pan story with a vengeance. But instead of Never-Never Land, Günter Grass gives us Danzig, a contested city on the Polish-German border; instead of Captain Hook and his pirates, we have the Nazis. And in place of Peter himself is Oskar, a twisted puer aeternis with a scream that can shatter glass and a drum rather than a shadow. First published in 1959, The Tin Drum's depiction of the Nazi era created a furor in Germany, for the world of Grass's making is rife with corrupt politicians and brutal grocers in brown shirts: There was once a grocer who closed his store one day in November, because something was doing in town; taking his son Oskar by the hand, he boarded a Number 5 streetcar and rode to the Langasser Gate, because there as in Zoppot and Langfuhr the synagogue was on fire. The synagogue had almost burned down and the firemen were looking on, taking care that the flames should not spread to other buildings. Outside the wrecked synagogue, men in uniform and others in civilian clothes piled up books, ritual objects, and strange kinds of cloth. The mound was set on fire and the grocer took advantage of the opportunity to warm his fingers and his feelings over the public blaze. As Oskar grows older (though not taller), portents of war transform into the thing itself. Danzig is the first casualty when, in the summer of 1939, residents turn against each other in a pitched battle between Poles and Germans. In the years that follow, Oskar goes from one picaresque adventure to the next--he joins a troupe of traveling musicians; he becomes the leader of a group of anarchists; he falls in love; he becomes a recording artist--until some time after the war, he is convicted of murder and confined to a mental hospital. The Tin Drum uses savage comedy and a stiff dose of magical realism to capture not only the madness of war, but also the black cancer at the heart of humanity that allows such degradations to occur. Grass wields his humor like a knife--yes, he'll make you laugh, but he'll make you bleed, as well. There have been many novels written about World War II, but only a handful can truly be called great; The Tin Drum, without a doubt, is one. --Alix Wilber Book Description
Acclaimed as the greatest German novel written since the end of World War II, The Tin Drum is the autobiography of thirty-year-old Oskar Matzerath, who has lived through the long Nazi nightmare and who, as the novel begins, is being held in a mental institution. Willfully stunting his growth at three feet for many years, wielding his tin drum and piercing scream as anarchistic weapons, he provides a profound yet hilarious perspective on both German history and the human condition in the modern... read more The Merriam-Webster Encyclopedia of Literature , April 1, 1995
Picaresque novel by Gunter Grass, a purported autobiography of a dwarf who lives through the birth and death of Nazi Germany, published in 1959 as Die Blechtrommel. The work's protagonist, Oskar Matzerath, narrates the novel from an asylum for the insane. He claims to have consciously stopped growing at the age of three in protest against adulthood; although intellectually normal, he has the stunted body of a dwarf. Oskar's voice is shrill enough to shatter glass, and his passion is banging on... read more Synopsis
A classic work, universally acclaimed as the greatest German novel written since the end of World War II. read more
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Customer Reviews
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Solid
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Reviewer:
James M. Grosser
from Washington, DC
January 11, 2000
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A tremendously well written (and well translated), original, and fascinating book. The style is absurd and ironic in the extreme. The narrator, Oscar Matzerath, provides a searing critique of petit bourgeois German and Polish culture in the period leading up to and including WWII. But don't expect to identify with or even like Oscar, as he is a tyrant and misanthrope. The Tin Drum reminded me a little of Giles Goat Boy by John Barth, but I would rate the Tin Drum as a far better written and more interesting book. Also contains very interesting historical information about northern Germany and Poland.
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1
person
found this review helpful.
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Tin Drum
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Reviewer:
A reader
from Leesburg, VA
December 29, 1999
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Simply one of the greatest books of the 20th century! This book will still be read centuries from now.
--This text refers to the Hardcover edition.
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1
person
found this review helpful.
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Metaphorically challenged...
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Reviewer:
Jason Jones
from Philadelphia
December 14, 1999
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I just finished this novel this evening and have to admit it was one of the more painful experiences that I have had in the last little while. The metaphor of a stunted Oskar (a metaphor for Weimar and Nazi Germany) who is the perpetual three year old grew tiresome rather quickly. Grass never normalizes his character in the face of the absurdity of the Nazi regime. He is absurd even in this totally absurd world. If he had been more normalized it would have been much more interesting, because it would show that in Nazi Germany even the deformity of the eternal three year old does not stand out, because it is all theatre. What was interesting about the novel was the loss of identity that Oskar felt (much like Germany itself in the Adenauer aftermath of the 1950's)when he gave up his drum. Why Grass was given the Nobel Prize is beyond my ken.
--This text refers to the Hardcover edition.
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4
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just amazing
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Reviewer:
onedown (oned0wn@ix.netcom.com)
from Redondo Beach, CA, USA
November 7, 1999
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i just finished this book and it really was everything i thought it would be. its amazing how the author combines a really strange character and plot and throws is loads of sarcastic humor. thsi book is relatively long but i never ever got bored through the whole thing. believe me that says a lot.. i am EXTREMELY picky about what i read. although its a wonderful book i wouldnt recommend it for doing any kind of report since it lacks a central conflict, resolution etc.. but if you just want a book to read get this one it will change your life.
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5
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