The Berliners by Emma Harding was one of the strangest and most surprising books I’ve read.
There were six different main characters who were linked by having lived at various times in the same apartment at Friedrichstrasse 19 throughout the twentieth century.
The story started with a young wife and mother in 1986 who was also a terrorist, when she and her colleagues who lived in the apartment at Friedrichstrasse 19 blew up a car. Soon after, the point of view changed in mid-sentence to Rudi, a photographer, who in 1906 was a member of the Academy of Magical Arts which was located at Friedrichstrasse 19. As the story progressed, it jumped into the lives of others, including Heike in 2019, who jumped from the top of the Berlin Wall when it came down into the arms of the man she would marry, Hans, a pornographic photographer who lived in the apartment in 1969 and several others.
Each time the point of view changed I felt as if I was left hanging, wanting to find out what was happening to the character I had just been with, but also torn by wanting to know what was going on with the character who I was now with.
Several characters were linked by having known and loved each other, while others were only connected by bits and pieces that remained in the apartment, although they were all linked by premonitions that eventually came to pass. The characters were all distinct and had their own stories with satisfactory beginnings, middles and ends.
My only complaint was that by the end of the book I didn’t want it to end.
Rose Reads Novels 
Comments on: "The Berliners by Emma Harding" (13)
What a unique and fascinating book! I might have to check out its availability for me!
The Berliners certainly is unusual. Hope you can track it down.
I think it might drive me mad to leave one character mid-sentence and start following another, but it does sound intriguing. And not wanting a book to end is the greatest compliment of all!
Ending sections mid-sentence drove me mad, too, but it was very effective.
I’m going to Berlin this Spring so the title got me and I’m going to give it a go, even though I might be driven crazy! Not wanting a book to end is the biggest compliment!
WOW! A trip to Berlin from Australia would be a very big deal, so I’m impressed (please don’t spoil my excitement for you by saying it is direct flight for you of less than two hours, or that everyone there speaks English, etc…)
I do hope reading The Berliners enhances your visit.
OK I won’t tell you that we’re taking the train . . .
Really????
You certainly have me intrigued, Rose. I shall be looking out for this one.
The Berliners was intriguing and not just because of the clever way the stories were entwined or the structure. The actual lives of the characters at their various times were fascinating.
I’ve never heard of a book quite like this before. By the end did you feel satisfied? Or still like some of the characters’ stories were left dangling?
I was perfectly satisfied with all of the story endings, just would have liked more. The Berliners could have been another 500 pages longer and I would have wanted more.
That’s high praise!