Erich Kastner

Erich Kastner
(1899 - 1974)

When the Nazis arranged their infamous book bales in 1933, few of the dissident writers were around to witness it. Erich Kastner, however, made a public appearance in Berlin to look on as his novel Fabian was denounced as a banned book and committed to the flames. While his contemporary colleagues, including Erich Maria Remarque and Thomas Mann, moved to neutral Switzerland, Kastner remained in Germany, suffering Nazi bullying and the financial and moral restrictions of not being able to be published. After the war, he continued to write mainly children's books and contributed to film scripts based on his novels from the pre-war, and pre-Nazi period. He died in 1974.

Erich Kastner's most popular books were written between 1929 and 1933 and many of these books are still available in reprint editions in the English language. His book about Lottie and Lisa, the twins separated when babies who meet up on a summer camp and switch places, has been filmed approximately once every decade since the 1950s, by either German filmmakers, or Hollywood.

Emil and the Detectives

(Emil und die Detective)

Published by Jonathan Cape in 1931, English translation in 1931 by May Massee (US), 1935. New English translation in 1959 by Eileen Hall (UK), new English translation by W Martin in 2007.

A boy travelling by train is robbed by a fellow (adult) passenger and engages the help of some streetwise kids in Berlin to regain his money (and some more). The book is universally regarded as the first child detective story where children investigate and solve mysteries.

Emil and the Detectives: A Story for Children in the May Massee translation is out of print, but available second hand.
Emil and the Detectives (Puffin Story Books) translated by Eileen Hall is out of print, but widely (and cheaply) available in used condition.
Emil And The Detectives (Emil Tischbein) translated by W Martin is still in print and can be purchase new.

Annaluise and Anton

(Pünktchen und Anton)

Published by Jonathan Cape in 1932, English translation by Alison Sutton.

Annaluise lives in a privileged part of Berlin, while Anton stays with his ailing mother in a rundown bedsit. However, a deep friendship develops between the children, which comes in handy when Annaluise's house is under attack by a burglar.

Annaluise and Anton was last published in the UK in 1962 in Alison Sutton's English translation. Books are only available in used condition.


The 35th of May or Conrad's Ride To The South Seas
(Der 35. Mai oder Konrad reitet in die Südsee)

Published by Jonathan Cape in 1933, translated by Cyrus Brooks.

On a visit to his uncle, Conrad discovers a magic cupboard, and meets an equally magical horse. When he, together with his uncle and the horse, enter the cupboard, they come to a multiverse of fantastical lands.

The 35th of May, or, Conrad's ride to the South Seas was last published in 1967 by New English Library (Cyrus Brooks translation). Very few copies are available second hand, and they come at a price.

The Flying Classroom

(Das fliegende Klassenzimmer)

Published by Jonathan Cape in 1934 in an English translation by Cyrus Brooks.

Set in a German boading school, the boys are having a fight with a neighbouring gang. Open war breaks out when some of the boarding school boys get kidnapped together with the exercise books, and with the advice of a kind stranger (who lives in a car) the boys soon discover their own potential.

The Flying Classroom (Red Fox middle fiction) was last published in 1995 (Cyrus Brooks translation) and is only available in used condition. Earlier editions (same translations) of The Flying Classroom (Puffin Books) are also available.

Emil and the Three Twins

(Emil und die drei Zwillinge)

Published by Jonathan Cape in 1935, English translation by Cyrus Brooks

The gang from Emil and the Detectives meets up again and goes on a holiday to the seaside where they meet a team of acrobats. Soon there are new mysteries to solve, and some of them even get shipwrecked.

Emil And The Three Twins (Emil Tischbein) is currently still in print in the translation by Cyrus Brooks and can be purchased brand new. Emil and the three twins (Puffin books) in an older edition (same translation) is also still widely available in used condition.

Lottie and Lisa

(Das doppelte Lottchen)

Made famous by a series of Hollywood movies, usually called The Parent Trap, this is the story of Lottie and Lisa who meet at summer camp and are struck by their physical resemblance. Further digging reveals that they are twins separated at birth. When summer camp ends, the girls decide to swap places to get to know the parent they missed out on, which is where the fun really begins.

Fabian - The Story of a Moralist

(Der Fabian: Die Geschichte eines Moralisten)

First published by The story in Kastner's most famous book for adults is set in the time shortly before the takeover of Germany by the Nazis. Fabian is an optimistic, yet unemployed advertisement writer whose life unravels with uncontrollable speed. His girlfriend leaves him for a more promising relationship, his best friend dies as a result of a cruel joke and any hope for future employment is dashed by the rise of the far right.