Europe Central

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Europe Central
Book cover, hardback edition.
Author	William Vollmann
Country	United States
Language	English
Genre(s)	Historical Fiction
Publisher	Viking Adult
Publication date	2005
Media type	Print (Hardcover and Paperback)
Pages	832 pp
ISBN	ISBN 0670033928

Europe Central is a 2005 National Book Award-winning novel by William T. Vollmann.^[1]

The novel, which takes place in central Europe in the 20th century, examines a vast array of characters, ranging from generals to martyrs, officers to poets, traitors to artists and musicians. It deals with the moral decisions made by people in the most testing of times and offering a bold and mesmerizing perspective on human actions during wartime. Vollmann makes use of many historical figures as characters including composer Dmitri Shostakovich, artist Kathe Kollwitz, film director Roman Karmen, SS officer Kurt Gerstein, as well as German general Friedrich Paulus and Soviet general Andrey Vlasov.

[edit] Reception

The Times Literary Supplement wrote that Vollmann "has turned to the historical novel and made it his own, fashioning a work which is cinematic in scope, epic in ambition and continuously engaging, shows that he is one of the most important and fascinating writers of our time."

The New York Times Book Review described it at his "most welcoming work, possibly his best book… part novel and part stories, virtuoso historical remembrance and focused study of violence."

Europe Central received the 2005 National Book Award for fiction.

In 2007, Europe Central was adapted for the stage by the Little Green Pig Theatrical Concern playwrights-in-residence John Justice and Michael A. Smith. It opened at Manbites Dog Theater in Durham, North Carolina on January 17th, 2008 and closed on February 2nd.