HomeGroupsTalkMoreZeitgeist
Search Site
This site uses cookies to deliver our services, improve performance, for analytics, and (if not signed in) for advertising. By using LibraryThing you acknowledge that you have read and understand our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy. Your use of the site and services is subject to these policies and terms.

Results from Google Books

Click on a thumbnail to go to Google Books.

Loading...

The Dancing Bear (1954)

by Frances Faviell

Other authors: See the other authors section.

MembersReviewsPopularityAverage ratingMentions
532490,434 (4.5)13
'You don't want to mind about any of this, ' said the driver, waving a hand at the grey ruins and the greyer dust. 'In a few days you'll be so used to it that you'll like them. Berlin's a grand place! I'd rather be here than anywhere else in the world, and that's a fact.' 'No more perceptive portrait of Germany in defeat has been etched in word than Frances Faviell's first book, The Dancing Bear, which made so powerful an impact upon me that I read it in a single sitting.' Guy Ramsey, Daily Telegraph 'Berlin during the decisive years from 1946 to 1949. ... The prostitution which paid so handsomely; the black market which brought in rich rewards, although it meant that the Berliners had to part with treasured possessions; the night clubs which catered for still baser tastes; the impoverished intellectuals and the starving professors and the poor who had only their wits with which to eke out a bare sustenance--all this and much else the author describes with insight, incisiveness, and realism.' Times Literary Supplement 'There is great charity in this book; there is the sharp, limpid eye of the artist; there is sound realism; and there is an unswerving, passionate desire to tell the truth." John Connell, Evening News 'They were hard and terrible times, and brilliantly does Frances Faviell describe them for us. We meet the Altmann family and follow their joys and troubles. ... The book is a brilliant pen-picture of the post-war years. We have British, French, American and Russian characters, but the background is always Berlin, and the strange tunes to which its bear danced.' Liverpool Daily Post This new edition includes an afterword by Frances Faviell's son, John Parker, and additional supplementary material.… (more)
None
Loading...

Sign up for LibraryThing to find out whether you'll like this book.

No current Talk conversations about this book.

» See also 13 mentions

Showing 2 of 2
This is a wonderfully touching portrait of Berlin, as seen through the lives of members of the Altmann family and those close to them, in the immediate post-war years from 1947 to 1953.
The author was herself a trained artist and this is noticeable in the almost lyrical quality of some of her prose. More than that, though, she uses words as an artist would use brushes, from gentle, soft descriptions of countryside to sharp, harsh delineations of traits in the characters she portrays.
This book delights on many levels, just as a good painting does. An afterword by the author's son, together with illustrations by the author herself, complete a beautiful composition.
An exceptionally good read. Francis Faviell goes straight on to my shortlist of favourite authors. ( )
  SunnyJim | Jul 23, 2023 |
A shockingly immediate and intimate view of devastated Berlin and the starving Berliners in the chaotic aftermath of WW2. The author was the wife of a British officer sent there as part of the occupying forces (Britain, France, USA and Soviet Union) sent to restore order. The power of her narrative lies in her ability to avoid the stereotypical thinking and the hatreds resulting from years of war, and to feel empathy for the shattered people, many of whom she gets to know well and helps as best she can. She is observant and insightful in describing the various ways that people responded to the defeat and tried to survive terrible privation, abuse and the complete overturn of their worldview. She observes as the allies in Berlin start to fall out, describing the birth of what became known as the Cold War and the Berlin airlift. This book was published soon after the events it describes, and takes you right back there. ( )
2 vote Eurydice2 | Sep 7, 2013 |
Showing 2 of 2
no reviews | add a review

» Add other authors

Author nameRoleType of authorWork?Status
Faviell, Francesprimary authorall editionsconfirmed
Parker, JohnAfterwordsecondary authorsome editionsconfirmed

Belongs to Publisher Series

You must log in to edit Common Knowledge data.
For more help see the Common Knowledge help page.
Canonical title
Original title
Alternative titles
Original publication date
People/Characters
Important places
Important events
Related movies
Epigraph
"Poor bear," the said:
"he must dance to every tune."
Dedication
FOR MY HUSBAND
and for all my friends in Berlin
especially Lotte
and Dr Annemarie Nitze
First words
It was at the roundabout juncture of Rechsstrasse and Kaiserdamm that I first saw Frau Altman.
Quotations
I was already learning to my surprise that there had apparently been very few Nazis anywhere. They just did not exist. If it was pointed out to the Germans that the Allies had a complete list of the party members in their possession, they would shrug their shoulders and say glibly that of course they had to belong, but, of course, yes, that just didn’t mean a thing.
“You don’t want to mind about any of this,” he said, waving a hand at the grey ruins and the greyer dust. “In a few days you’ll be so used to it that you’ll like them. Berlin’s a grand place! I’d rather be here than anywhere else in the world, and that’s a fact.”
Last words
(Click to show. Warning: May contain spoilers.)
Disambiguation notice
Publisher's editors
Blurbers
Original language
Canonical DDC/MDS
Canonical LCC

References to this work on external resources.

Wikipedia in English

None

'You don't want to mind about any of this, ' said the driver, waving a hand at the grey ruins and the greyer dust. 'In a few days you'll be so used to it that you'll like them. Berlin's a grand place! I'd rather be here than anywhere else in the world, and that's a fact.' 'No more perceptive portrait of Germany in defeat has been etched in word than Frances Faviell's first book, The Dancing Bear, which made so powerful an impact upon me that I read it in a single sitting.' Guy Ramsey, Daily Telegraph 'Berlin during the decisive years from 1946 to 1949. ... The prostitution which paid so handsomely; the black market which brought in rich rewards, although it meant that the Berliners had to part with treasured possessions; the night clubs which catered for still baser tastes; the impoverished intellectuals and the starving professors and the poor who had only their wits with which to eke out a bare sustenance--all this and much else the author describes with insight, incisiveness, and realism.' Times Literary Supplement 'There is great charity in this book; there is the sharp, limpid eye of the artist; there is sound realism; and there is an unswerving, passionate desire to tell the truth." John Connell, Evening News 'They were hard and terrible times, and brilliantly does Frances Faviell describe them for us. We meet the Altmann family and follow their joys and troubles. ... The book is a brilliant pen-picture of the post-war years. We have British, French, American and Russian characters, but the background is always Berlin, and the strange tunes to which its bear danced.' Liverpool Daily Post This new edition includes an afterword by Frances Faviell's son, John Parker, and additional supplementary material.

No library descriptions found.

Book description
Haiku summary

Current Discussions

None

Popular covers

Quick Links

Rating

Average: (4.5)
0.5
1
1.5
2
2.5
3
3.5
4 5
4.5 2
5 5

Is this you?

Become a LibraryThing Author.

 

About | Contact | Privacy/Terms | Help/FAQs | Blog | Store | APIs | TinyCat | Legacy Libraries | Early Reviewers | Common Knowledge | 206,359,160 books! | Top bar: Always visible