The Complete German Literature Reading List (238 Works)

Comments · 210

• ST

  @strange.lucidity · 7 months ago (edited) · pinned

  Pinned comment for corrections.<br><br>Corrections Round #1 (March 14th, 2026)<br><br>Errors I made:<br><br>- As a viewer pointed out, Martin Luther was not the first one who translated the bible into German. He was, however, the first one who translated directly from Greek and Hebrew instead of &quot;retranslating&quot; the Latin version.<br>- A couple of people pointed out, that Gryphius&apos; “Catharina von Georgien” is not a Bourgeois tragedy yet, since the protagonists are nobles. Some quick research classifies the play as a tragedy (”Trauerspiel”) or “Märyrerdrama”.<br><br>Books to add:<br><br>- Many recommended the works of Jakob Wassermann, who I totally overlooked. Check out “The Maurizius Case” or “Casper Hauser”.<br>- Ödön von Horváths “Youth without God” should rightfully be added!<br>- Same with “Storm of Steel” by Ernst Jünger, Hermann Brochs &quot;The Death of Virgil&quot; and Alfred Kubins &quot;The Other Side&quot; (How could I forget that!?).<br>- Uwe Johnson is on the list, but someone rightfully suggested his “Anniversaries” to be added.<br>- Same with Heinrich Böll. He’s on the list, but “The Clown” and “The Lost Honor of Katharina Blum” are probably his most influencial works.<br>- Jean Pauls “Flower, Fruit, and Thorn Pieces” (aka Siebenkäs) should be added to the list.<br><br>- Some authors that were suggested, but I know too little about to comment on: Georg Christoph Lichtenberg (apparently the founder of German-language aphorism), Michael Ende (Author of “The Neverending Story&quot;), Friedrich Wilhelm Joseph Schelling, Gert Ledig &amp; Kurt Tucholsky. Knock yourselves out!<br>- Many people added works by authors that are already on the list (like Goethe, Hoffmannsthal, etc.). To that I say: I tried to list representative works of every author. My thought was: If people like Goethe or Hoffmannsthal from the suggestions on the list, they&apos;ll check out the rest by themselves.<br><br>Lastly, many of the other books people are suggesting in the comments (I’d say about 60%) are actually on the list 😅 (e.g. “Rider on the White Horse” by Storm, “All Quiet on the Western Front” by Erich Maria Remarque, etc.)<br><br>Thanks for the corrections, everyone 🙏🏻 I’ll adapt the pdf once I’ve gone through some rounds of corrections.

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• AT

  @Atomheartz · 7 months ago (edited)

  Hölderlin is one of the German writers/thinkers I find myself most enjoying the struggle to understand his works. I think it’s a mixture of the fact that I studied in Tübingen for 6 months along with my years long obsession with Hegel. The fact that I was where the both of them walked and studied (and one died [whose tombstone i stood at while thinking for many periods of time]) makes me feel the need to know their works even more!

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• AS

  @AstralkörperReinigender · 7 months ago

  Tolle Liste. Ich danke dafür, dass du viele Autoren aus Ostdeutschland auf der Liste hattest!

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• AN

  @AndrewRiffs · 7 months ago

  This is a magnificent gift.Thank you for sharing the fruits of your labor with us.

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• LO

  @looyrocks3765 · 1 day ago

  Superb!; there are works here I was completely unaware of, and now I am exploring new paths. I suggest that Hans Lebert be considered for this list of essentials—specifically his work &quot;Die Wolfshaut&quot; (The Wolf Skin). Thanks for share!

• RO

  @rogueinsiderpodcast · 6 months ago

  What a blessing for a learner and fan of German literature and language. Thank you.

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• MI

  @michellyandrade6707 · 7 months ago

  German-language literature is by far my favorite. Its depth is not found in the scream, but in silence, in the fracture of consciousness, in its relentless examination of the human condition.

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• DE

  @dedalus.hamlet · 7 months ago

  This was the video I was looking for. Now I have B2 German, just started to read Kafka in German cause I already read his stuff like 58 times. I cannot wait to reach c1-c2 so I can read more advanced lit. :)

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• AL

  @albertosantos6647 · 6 months ago

  The man without qualities, ten out of ten

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• JA

  @jari.ba44 · 7 months ago

  Danke danke danke für das Video. Ich bin derzeit generell auf der Suche nach mehr deutschen Büchern und das Video hat mir unheimlich geholfen :)

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• PE

  @penultimateh766 · 7 months ago

  Our erudite, poised, and beautiful host is the best possible guide through this topic.

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• KU

  @Kujiranoai · 7 months ago

  Great to see so much Thomas Bernhard on the list but not his most obvious works I would suggest. I’ve read Thomas Mann’s major novels except for Joseph and his Brothers and a decent number of other authors on your list but there are still quite a few new ones, so for a lover of German literature this is fantastic, thanks.

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