Der Mädchenkrieg

Der Mädchenkrieg is one of the most famous works by German writer Manfred Bieler. This extensive historical and family novel follows the fate of the Pasetti family — more precisely, the three sisters Christine, Sophie and Katharina — in a dramatic period of Czechoslovak history from the mid-1930s until the end of World War II.

The plot is set in Prague, a city of rich culture and turbulent geopolitics. Through the growth and maturation of three sisters with completely different personalities, the author masterfully intertwines their personal passions, love affairs and family conflicts with major historical turning points. The rise of Nazism, the collapse of Czechoslovakia, the German occupation and finally the arrival of the Red Army irreparably change their lives and force them to make difficult moral and life compromises.

With great narrative power and a dose of humorous, yet tragicomic realism, Bieler depicts the atmosphere of Central Europe on the eve of and during the war. The novel's title alludes to an old Czech legend of a women's rebellion, but in this context it symbolizes the inner strength and struggle of women for survival in a world dominated by male wars and destructive ideologies. The work is a layered portrait of an era, a deeply moving story of loyalty, betrayal and the indomitability of the human spirit.