BERLIN – Biography of a Great City

Berlin – how it became what it is: the fascinating history of a global city in an expanded new edition.

Parvenu among metropolises, laboratory of modernity, symbol of the tumultuous 20th century: In Berlin, not only German but also European history is concentrated. Both perspectives are in focus for Jens Bisky as he depicts the city's development since its rise to Prussian residence. Berlin was exceedingly adaptable and open: to the persecuted French Huguenots and the Enlightenment thinkers under Hohenzollern rule; later as a metropolis of proletarians and industrialists, artists and journalists, and as the "place to be" during the Golden Twenties. All of this becomes vividly palpable in Bisky's account, but equally so are the destruction during World War II and the tension-filled atmosphere after 1945, when the major power blocs faced off here.

Jens Bisky presents a comprehensive portrayal of Berlin's history, as hasn't been seen for decades, from the Thirty Years' War to the present day. A captivating narrative about rise, fall, and new beginnings – and simultaneously, a gripping panorama of German as well as European history, reflected in the unique metropolis.