Christmas Not Just Once a Year | Literary Criticism & Book Review

Christmas Not Just Once a Year Critical Overview

Several critics, including Erhard Friedrichsmeyer, believe that Böll's greatest work is to be found in his short stories and, more particularly, in his satires. Friedrichsmeyer, writing in his University of Dayton Review article, "Böll's Satires," considers his satirical stories his best work, and he calls "Christmas Not Just Once a Year" one of his "masterpieces." Robert C. Conard, writing in Understanding Heinrich Böll, concurs: "Böll's work in the satiric mode has no equal in postwar German literature." He adds, "In "Nicht nur zur Weihnachtszeit" Böll created not only a national classic but a satire for all ages." Conard also quotes Friedrichsmeyer as saying that the story is a "satiric gem." Rienhard K. Zachau, in his book Heinrich Böll: Forty Years of Criticism discusses the views of German critic Marcel Reich-Ranicki, who had a strong influence on the reception of Böll's work in Germany in the early 1960s. Reich-Ranicki, according to...
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