Wir sind nur Menschen / Zerstörter Traum vom Ruhm / Auf nassen Straßen

The book Wir sind nur Menschen / Zerstörter Traum vom Ruhm / Auf nassen Straßen brings together three short novels by Heinz G. Konsalik, which reveal his penchant for dramatic, emotionally charged stories about people pressed by circumstances. Their common theme is the fragility of human plans: love, success, security and personal dignity are easily undermined when characters face ambition, disappointment, wrong choices or social pressures.

Zerstörter Traum vom Ruhm stands out in particular, the story of Frank Schuster, a previously unsuccessful writer who finally gets the chance to have his text turned into a film script. For him, it is the realization of a long-dreamed-of success, but entering the world of fame, money and public recognition proves to be much more dangerous than he expected. The dream of triumph gradually turns into temptation, and the question of success becomes the question of the price one pays for recognition.

Auf nassen Straßen is set in the urban environment of Duisburg in the early 1970s. The atmosphere of the wet streets suggests insecurity, anxiety and lives that take place on the edge of everyday life. The title Wir sind nur Menschen most directly expresses the common thought of the collection: people make mistakes, stumble, want more than they can handle and often only through defeat do they realize their own limits. As a whole, the book brings Konsalik's view of the destinies of ordinary people whose dreams collide with reality.