Summary

In "George Orwell Was a Friend of Mine," Hans, a former member of the East German Volkspelizei and former prison guard at Hohenschonhausen Prison, regularly receives letters from former inmates but rarely does more than skim them. It is 2008, and Hans has no shame or regrets about his work at the prison during the Cold War nearly twenty years before. Hans is divorced and owns a dog named Prinz. His ex-wife, Gitte, always rooted for the underdog, and loved Western music and literature, including the novel “1984”. On the front lawn, Hans finds a package—the third one now—and decides to deal with it later. He can see the old prison, now a museum, just down the block. Some of the old prison guards and their families still live on the block, but many others have moved away...