“Schneider’s description of the Berlin Wall from both sides . . . is the ultimate depiction of this structure. Nothing more need be said.”

Werner Herzog

One of the "Top 10 Books about the Berlin Wall"

"Might be the best Wall fiction ever written. . . . This is a riveting portrait of a city and a people trapped by mental as well as physical walls."

Guardian

“Marvelous . . . creates, in very few words, the unreal reality of Berlin.”

Salman Rushdie | New York Times Book Review

“An honest, rich book. . . . It is one those rare books that come back at odd moments to intrude on your comfortable conclusions and easy images.”

Robert Houston | Nation

“Schneider’s characters, like Kundera’s, are sentient and sophisticated figures at a time when the constraints of Communist rule persist but its energy has entirely vanished.”

Richard Eder | Los Angeles Times Book Review

“[Schneider’s] short, remarkable book is profoundly moving and frequently salted with humor, for which readers will be grateful.”

Publishers Weekly