Blood Brothers: A Novel Paperback – March 3, 2015

A word of caution: this is not a book for everyone. The homosexual sex is very explicit and the author's ideas about religion are very peculiar and might sound extremely disturbing for believers.The first problem of this book is its cover pic which, though pleasant in itself, is hardly related to the content.As I mentioned above there is a lot of explicit sex but this is hardly a porn. As is the case in his vampire trilogy Mr Schiefelbein's main interest is (catholic) religion. He focuses on monastic life to underline his spite for the traditional catholic vision of religious life. He makes his dislike very clear but gives us very few hints about what his personal opinions might be to let us think for ourselves instead.The plot in itself is not particularly original for those readers who have already read "Vampire Vow": Juan Ramon is clearly Victor's younger brother; his rage, his iconoclastic fury are much the same. The sweet Bernardo is the twin of the two innocent monks of the other trilogy.What makes this short novel worth reading is the astonishing quality of the writing: much the same you find in "Vampire Vow" with the addition of the stylistically most interesting shifting between the two narrators you find in the later "Vampire Thrall". Not a word wasted, every turn of phrase deceivingly simple.

This brief (164 pages) novel is highly interesting for several reasons. First is the story of the book itself, originally published in 1932. Suppressed by the Nazis in the early 1930's, the book was largely forgotten until its recent rediscovery and publication in this handy edition. The author, a journalist and social worker, apparently disappeared during the second war and virtually nothing is known about him. Why the Nazis chose to ban it is not entirely clear, since there is no reference to the Third Reich or its prominent personnel in the book. Perhaps it was simply because the Nazis were sensitive to how Berlin was portrayed in the media, and this certainly is not a flattering take on the city. In an excellent intro by Herbert A. Arnold, he explores the possible reasons as well as putting the novel into a helpful context for readers not particularly familiar with Weimar Germany. Certainly read his intro first to really benefit from the novel.The book is also interesting for the authentic and colorful picture it portrays of male youth gangs in Weimar Berlin. The central characters consist of a group of 8 - 10 young men, most under 21 and hence in a manner of speaking wards of the state and subject to instant imprisonment for misdeeds, vagrancy and lack of proper papers. The other main characters are two young fellows who are appalled by the reckless pickpocketing engaged in by the main body of boys, lucrative though it may be. They decide to go straight by buying, refurbishing and selling shoes--only to end up in trouble with the authorities anyway. I found it particularly interesting to see why these lads joined up in gangs to begin with. It appears the basic reason was simply Berlin was too big and frightening to take on by yourself. The gang became your family: providing food, money, protection, and simply being concerned about the welfare of its members. Moreover, the gangs had their own rules and judicial systems for administering punishment to violators.The book is also interesting for the insights it gives the reader into the severe financial depression afflicting Germany after the First War, fruitful conditions under which to hatch Nazism and Hitler. It is a very rough life whether you are a lad or an adult. What folks do on a daily basis to scrape together enough money for lodging, food and other necessities is not a pretty picture here. The book gives the reader a good insight into why after 15 years of this, the Nazis held an irresistible appeal.The only criticism I have of the book is that it has only a couple of explanatory notes by the translator to explain terms and aspects unfamiliar to us 21st century American readers. Otherwise, the translation is excellent and we really get the rhythm of what the author intended to get across. The book is well worth the limited time necessary to read it. Quite an unique and insightful piece of literature.

The style of the author makes you think that it was written more recently than before the Second World War. What a shame he disappeared under the Nazis, and his work was banned! The writing is very much such that it gives a great sociological approach to the subject, while still being a good read!

as a recon of ordinary underworld life in nazi Berlin it is full of antisemitic cliches, probably that was compulsory in order for any book in order to be published as it was in 1935, we will never know as the author just faded during WW2. But there some interesting hints about street names, clubs, bars and cabarets for those interesting in life in Berlin during the Weimar years and the early thirties.

Blood Brothers paint a picture of the seemier side of the Weimar Republic in 1930 or so. This is not the Berlin of the Kufurstendamm with it's elegant clubs and theatres nor the middle class Berlin. This is the gritty Berlin of the slums, unemployment, inflation and the fallout from the Versailles Treaty. A group of late teenage boys banded together by their misery, lack of homes and hunger are forced to form a gang, the Blood Brothers, and learn to survive by petty and not so petty crime and selling their bodies and souls to eat. It is a cruel system that has no place other than harsh penal institutions for lost teens with little hope of rehabilitation and redemption. The writer etches the portraits and events with pen and ink, a sparsity of style akin to a wood block print. These are the young men, who by will be, out of desperation and hideous promises, the Brown Shirts to come. A quick and intriguing read. Consider listening to Weill and Brecht in the background and hang up a painting of Egon Schiele.

It is a stretch to say I loved the book because the subject matter is so sad. It certainly made me reconsider some of my hard and fast notions. I recommend anyone read this who has an interest in understanding what other people may experience.

Fascinating book -- anticipates "Last Exit To Brooklyn" and so many other dark, street-wise novels to come. Captures the time and place and serves as an antidote to Cabaret. There's a touch of Bruno Schulz in the details. Thanks to Other Press for bravely republishing this great work. Wish Haffner had survived to write others.

I have been looking for a copy of this book for some time. The only thing keeping me from purchasing this book was the outrageous price some sellers were asking for this book. I finally found it at the right price. The book arrived within the specified timeframe and in good condition.

Haffner describes the lives of a group of young homeless vagabonds struggling to survive in Berlin. The stort consists of that of a gang and two boys who manage to break away and begin a path of security. Some of the scenes and images are harrowing. The poverty, helplessness and despair is distressing to read, a condemnation of the elite who enabled these conditions to exist. I wondered, as i read this were these the kind of desperate men attracted to Nazism, and had the objective conditions been different, would Nazism have found fertile soil.Banned by the Nazis, this book is a must read of the crisis of Weimar Grrmany

Very shocked by the book, the conditions in Germany in the 1920's was dire, and given that no one knows what became of the author, makes the book even more important.

Interesting contemporary novel about the depression in Germany. However, it has lost a lot of its impact over time.

A rather odd novel, with no plot or story as such, rather a snapshot of the lives of vagrant youths in 1930s Berlin. Blood Brothers is rather disjointed, with little characterisation or description, but still manages to convey the atmosphere and conditions of the time. These youngsters have a wretched existence, going from not knowing where they will sleep one day to living it up on their ill-gotten gains the next. Ernst Haffner's account of these unwanted and unloved misfits with their own twisted moral code has an authenticity that is supported by the banning of the book by the Nazis. Worth a read for the the content alone, never mind the intrigue surrounding the author.

Awesome evocation of mad city and mad times