A review by emkat1997
Berlin Now: The City After the Wall by Peter Schneider

5.0

Five stars might be pushing it, but for me this book deserves all five. I lived in Berlin for a semester and loved every moment of it. I find myself thinking about that time of my life on a weekly, if not daily, basis and Berlin Now brought back all of those memories for me. I found myself nodding in agreement as I read about the history of anti-semitism in the city and how it has affected the current inhabitants. Reading about how living in East Germany (I also lived in the Eastern part of the city) was bland and drab compared to the Western side and how the Ossi's reacted once the wall came down made me feel like I was there, even though I wasn't born until 8 years later. Schneider's writing transported me back in time. The ending line hit me hard. "I feel sorry for anyone who can't live here (Berlin)". I'd never really thought about it, but I feel the same way. Berlin, specifically living there, is something I think everyone should experience.