Overview
This first English language biography of Bertolt Brecht (1898-1956) in
two decades paints a strikingly new picture of one of the twentieth
century's most controversial cultural icons. First published in 2014 and
now available in paperback, it was critically lauded and declared the
definitive life of this great artist and writer. Drawing on letters,
diaries and unpublished material, including Brecht's medical records,
Parker offers a rich and enthralling account of Brecht's life and work,
viewed through the prism of the artist. Tracing his extraordinary life,
from his formative years in Augsburg, through the First World War, his
politicisation during the Weimar Republic and his years of exile, up to
the Berliner Ensemble's dazzling productions in Paris and London, Parker
shows how Brecht achieved his transformative effect upon world theatre
and poetry. Bertolt Brecht: A Literary Life is a powerful portrait of a
great, compulsively contradictory personality, whose artistry left its
lasting imprint on modern culture.