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Nicht nur zur Weihnachtszeit
Book by Boll, Heinrich
152 pages, Paperback
First published September 1, 1952
13 people are currently reading
191 people want to read
About the author
Heinrich Böll
638 books1,645 followersDer deutsche Schriftsteller und Übersetzer gilt als einer der bedeutendsten deutschen Autoren der Nachkriegszeit. Er schrieb Gedichte, Kurzgeschichten und Romane, von denen auch einige verfilmt wurden. Dabei setzte er sich kritisch mit der jungen Bundesrepublik auseinander. Zu seinen erfolgreichsten Werken zählen "Billard um halbzehn", "Ansichten eines Clowns" und "Gruppenbild mit Dame". Den Nobelpreis für Literatur bekam Heinrich Böll 1972; er war nach 43 Jahren der erste deutsche Schriftsteller, dem diese Auszeichnung zuteil wurde. 1974 erschien sein wohl populärstes Werk, "Die verlorene Ehre der Katharina Blum". Durch sein politisches Engagement wirkte er, gemeinsam mit seinem Freund Lew Kopelew, auf die europäische Literatur der Nachkriegszeit. Darüber hinaus arbeitete Böll gemeinsam mit seiner Frau Annemarie als Herausgeber und Übersetzer englischsprachiger Werke ins Deutsche...
Heinrich Böll became a full-time writer at the age of 30. His first novel, Der Zug war pünktlich (The Train Was on Time), was published in 1949. Many other novels, short stories, radio plays, and essay collections followed. In 1972 he received the Nobel Prize for Literature "for his writing which through its combination of a broad perspective on his time and a sensitive skill in characterization has contributed to a renewal of German literature." He was the first German-born author to receive the Nobel Prize since Hermann Hesse in 1946. His work has been translated into more than 30 languages, and he is one of Germany's most widely read authors.
Heinrich Böll became a full-time writer at the age of 30. His first novel, Der Zug war pünktlich (The Train Was on Time), was published in 1949. Many other novels, short stories, radio plays, and essay collections followed. In 1972 he received the Nobel Prize for Literature "for his writing which through its combination of a broad perspective on his time and a sensitive skill in characterization has contributed to a renewal of German literature." He was the first German-born author to receive the Nobel Prize since Hermann Hesse in 1946. His work has been translated into more than 30 languages, and he is one of Germany's most widely read authors.
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Displaying 1 - 19 of 19 reviews
November 19, 2017
When catastrophe is too close to ignore, traditional rituals offer a (false!) sense of security!
The title story in this Heinrich Böll short story collection is as timeless and brilliant as it is devastating and - funny! "Not only at Christmas" contains the painful essence of tradition and family in its most visible form.
A woman suffers through the insecurities of the first half of the 20th century, including two world wars, finding regular solace in the yearly celebration of a traditional German family Christmas. She takes pleasure in each moment of the ritual - the special cakes, the candles, the songs, the presence of the neighbourhood priest and relatives, and her most favourite feature is the "Tannenbaum", the Christmas tree. She anxiously supervises the decoration each year.
Her mental equilibrium breaks down at the end of the Second World War however, and when the family starts taking down the Christmas decorations in the winter of 1945, she begins screaming, and won't stop for weeks.
In an act of desperation, the family finally decides to bring back Christmas to the old lady's apartment, and celebrates it on a daily basis to accommodate the traumatised woman. What follows is the most satirical take on "keeping up the family tradition" I have ever read.
Every day, regardless of season, the family sings Christmas songs in the evening, eats Christmas cakes, and hears the angel at the top of the Christmas tree (which has to be exchanged regularly) blurt out his message of: "PEACE!" This "peace" resembles the "war is peace" message of Orwell's 1984 more than anything, and over time, the good intention of keeping the peace and sanity of the old lady by sticking to meaningless ritual takes its brutal toll on the rest of the family.
In the end, all is fake, even the priest and the participants in the ceremony, and the relatives break down one after the other.
Rarely have I encountered a better symbolic tale of what happens when procedure takes over the main role in a cultural tradition, ignoring the individual situation of the participants. To blend out unpleasant reality, many people tend to fall back on childhood patterns and trained behaviours, but more often than not, problems that are ignored grow more toxic when they are hidden under a shiny surface of respectable tradition.
While trying to protect the fragile old lady, the family learns to hate the tradition they are forced to keep up. Rituals need to be taken with a grain of salt, and to stay in touch with the reality of our present times, otherwise they are detrimental to the people they are supposed to comfort.
Such a sad truth, spoken in the inimitable language of Heinrich Böll.
Recommended to the world, and not only at Christmas time!
The title story in this Heinrich Böll short story collection is as timeless and brilliant as it is devastating and - funny! "Not only at Christmas" contains the painful essence of tradition and family in its most visible form.
A woman suffers through the insecurities of the first half of the 20th century, including two world wars, finding regular solace in the yearly celebration of a traditional German family Christmas. She takes pleasure in each moment of the ritual - the special cakes, the candles, the songs, the presence of the neighbourhood priest and relatives, and her most favourite feature is the "Tannenbaum", the Christmas tree. She anxiously supervises the decoration each year.
Her mental equilibrium breaks down at the end of the Second World War however, and when the family starts taking down the Christmas decorations in the winter of 1945, she begins screaming, and won't stop for weeks.
In an act of desperation, the family finally decides to bring back Christmas to the old lady's apartment, and celebrates it on a daily basis to accommodate the traumatised woman. What follows is the most satirical take on "keeping up the family tradition" I have ever read.
Every day, regardless of season, the family sings Christmas songs in the evening, eats Christmas cakes, and hears the angel at the top of the Christmas tree (which has to be exchanged regularly) blurt out his message of: "PEACE!" This "peace" resembles the "war is peace" message of Orwell's 1984 more than anything, and over time, the good intention of keeping the peace and sanity of the old lady by sticking to meaningless ritual takes its brutal toll on the rest of the family.
In the end, all is fake, even the priest and the participants in the ceremony, and the relatives break down one after the other.
Rarely have I encountered a better symbolic tale of what happens when procedure takes over the main role in a cultural tradition, ignoring the individual situation of the participants. To blend out unpleasant reality, many people tend to fall back on childhood patterns and trained behaviours, but more often than not, problems that are ignored grow more toxic when they are hidden under a shiny surface of respectable tradition.
While trying to protect the fragile old lady, the family learns to hate the tradition they are forced to keep up. Rituals need to be taken with a grain of salt, and to stay in touch with the reality of our present times, otherwise they are detrimental to the people they are supposed to comfort.
Such a sad truth, spoken in the inimitable language of Heinrich Böll.
Recommended to the world, and not only at Christmas time!
December 22, 2017
Today (Dec 21, 2017) would have been Heinrich Böll’s 100th birthday. So what could be more obvious than reading one of his stories.
“Nicht nur zur Weihnachtszeit” (“Christmas Not Just Once a Year”) is a satire and it’s very, very funny. It tells the story of a family who is forced to act every night as if it were Christmas Eve. Candles are lit, Christmas carols are sung, pastries are served, and, of course, there is also a nicely decorated Christmas tree. The mother, traumatized by the Second World War, insists on this tradition and the family members can not fight back at first. In the course of time (actually very soon) this “tradition” totally loses its importance for all family members, except for the mother. The mechanical angel on the top of the tree, who is whispering the word “peace” over and over again, and certainly hat an important meaning for the folks during the war, is soon barely noticed.
As every piece of a great writer, this fanciful story allows for multiple readings and interpretations. For me Böll here wants to present his criticism of restoration and rearmament in the young Federal Republic of Germany (the story was first published in 1952) soon after the war. He polemicized and demonstrated openly against rearmament under the government of Adenauer and later against nuclear armament, emergency legislation and radical decree. His experiences with Nazi dictatorship and as a soldier in the war nourished this strong commitment. It was an almost militant engagement of a deeply peace-loving, deeply religious, and philanthropic man. His call for peace was much louder than that of the Christmas angel in this story.
Do yourself a favor: read something by Heinrich Böll again.
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License.
“Nicht nur zur Weihnachtszeit” (“Christmas Not Just Once a Year”) is a satire and it’s very, very funny. It tells the story of a family who is forced to act every night as if it were Christmas Eve. Candles are lit, Christmas carols are sung, pastries are served, and, of course, there is also a nicely decorated Christmas tree. The mother, traumatized by the Second World War, insists on this tradition and the family members can not fight back at first. In the course of time (actually very soon) this “tradition” totally loses its importance for all family members, except for the mother. The mechanical angel on the top of the tree, who is whispering the word “peace” over and over again, and certainly hat an important meaning for the folks during the war, is soon barely noticed.
As every piece of a great writer, this fanciful story allows for multiple readings and interpretations. For me Böll here wants to present his criticism of restoration and rearmament in the young Federal Republic of Germany (the story was first published in 1952) soon after the war. He polemicized and demonstrated openly against rearmament under the government of Adenauer and later against nuclear armament, emergency legislation and radical decree. His experiences with Nazi dictatorship and as a soldier in the war nourished this strong commitment. It was an almost militant engagement of a deeply peace-loving, deeply religious, and philanthropic man. His call for peace was much louder than that of the Christmas angel in this story.
Do yourself a favor: read something by Heinrich Böll again.
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License.
July 21, 2025
Ich hatte noch nie ne Kurzgeschichtensammlung, die ich wirklich sehr gut fand. Immer sind natürlich flops dabei und die guten Geschichten würde ich gerne weiter lesen.
October 19, 2023
Satira totalno prilagođena današnjim uvjetima.
Kada čitam ovakve knjige imam dojam da kao ljudski rod uopće nismo napredovali, prilično jadno!
Kada čitam ovakve knjige imam dojam da kao ljudski rod uopće nismo napredovali, prilično jadno!
July 26, 2016
Uma história um pouco bizarra, mas de certa forma interessante. Uma escrita agradável combinada com personagens estranhas por assim dizer.
Quando chegou a altura de desmontar a árvore de Natal, a tia Milla desatou aos gritos e assim permaneceu durante quase uma semana. Os médicos não viam qual poderia ser a fonte para o que se estava a suceder. Entretanto o tio Franz lembrou-se de voltar a colocar uma nova árvore de Natal e isso pareceu ser a solução. Como não eram árvores artificiais, como hoje em dia se usa, a que estava na sala começava a secar e as suas agulhas caíam. Durante o sono da tia Milla todos trocavam de árvore e enfeitavam-na novamente. Aquela casa estava totalmente envolta no espírito natalício, haviam os típicos doces, as velas, o padre, os anjos e os anões com as suas bigornas e até mesmo eram cantadas músicas de Natal. O tempo foi passando, no entanto, aquela família apenas festejava o Natal... Até que as coisas começaram a tomar um outro rumo, rumo o qual não irei contar porque senão estaria a contar a história toda. Apenas irei dizer que a constante celebração do Natal modificou as pessoas da família...
Quando chegou a altura de desmontar a árvore de Natal, a tia Milla desatou aos gritos e assim permaneceu durante quase uma semana. Os médicos não viam qual poderia ser a fonte para o que se estava a suceder. Entretanto o tio Franz lembrou-se de voltar a colocar uma nova árvore de Natal e isso pareceu ser a solução. Como não eram árvores artificiais, como hoje em dia se usa, a que estava na sala começava a secar e as suas agulhas caíam. Durante o sono da tia Milla todos trocavam de árvore e enfeitavam-na novamente. Aquela casa estava totalmente envolta no espírito natalício, haviam os típicos doces, as velas, o padre, os anjos e os anões com as suas bigornas e até mesmo eram cantadas músicas de Natal. O tempo foi passando, no entanto, aquela família apenas festejava o Natal... Até que as coisas começaram a tomar um outro rumo, rumo o qual não irei contar porque senão estaria a contar a história toda. Apenas irei dizer que a constante celebração do Natal modificou as pessoas da família...
April 1, 2019
This collection of stories demonstrates that Heinrich Böll is not only a brilliant author, but has a sense of humour as well!
December 24, 2025
Großartige, humorvolle Weihnachtsgeschichte! Ein Klassiker, der öfter vorgelesen werden sollte.
April 2, 2012
This is one of a handful of books and plays that I read in German (struggled to read is more like it) while a student at Tulane University. Those works collectively gave me the distinct impression that all German literature is dark and depressing and that it all focuses on human psychology.
The Title means "Not Only at Christmastime," and it is a play on certain words in the Christmas carol, "O Tannenbaum" ("Oh Christmas Tree"): "Du grunst nicht nur zur Sommerzeit, Nein auch im Winter wenn es schneit" (literally, "you green not only in the summertime but also in winter when it snows" -- the English version of the lyrics are "Not only green when summer's here, But also when 'tis cold and drear").
The story is set in post-War Germany and begins when a family taking down a Christmas tree must react to an aunt who becomes extremely distraught by the removal of the tree. Instead of confronting her irrational behavior directly, they decide to celebrate every day as Christmas. Their actions become increasingly bizarre, so that in some ways they are all participating in the aunt's insanity. The story is a psychological study of the German nation as a whole and was intended to address the reluctance of the German people to confront their responsibility for World War II and the Holocaust. Just as Aunt Milla wanted to relive Christmas every day, the German people wanted to relive the happy days before the war. This is not an uplifting work, but it is an interesting psychological study. Don't read this if you suffer from depression or have suicidal thoughts!
Date of completion is a rough estimate.
The Title means "Not Only at Christmastime," and it is a play on certain words in the Christmas carol, "O Tannenbaum" ("Oh Christmas Tree"): "Du grunst nicht nur zur Sommerzeit, Nein auch im Winter wenn es schneit" (literally, "you green not only in the summertime but also in winter when it snows" -- the English version of the lyrics are "Not only green when summer's here, But also when 'tis cold and drear").
The story is set in post-War Germany and begins when a family taking down a Christmas tree must react to an aunt who becomes extremely distraught by the removal of the tree. Instead of confronting her irrational behavior directly, they decide to celebrate every day as Christmas. Their actions become increasingly bizarre, so that in some ways they are all participating in the aunt's insanity. The story is a psychological study of the German nation as a whole and was intended to address the reluctance of the German people to confront their responsibility for World War II and the Holocaust. Just as Aunt Milla wanted to relive Christmas every day, the German people wanted to relive the happy days before the war. This is not an uplifting work, but it is an interesting psychological study. Don't read this if you suffer from depression or have suicidal thoughts!
Date of completion is a rough estimate.
February 15, 2016
I had forgotten how good B_ll is. This great collection of short stories shows wonderful irony and humour, always with a twinkle in the eye.
One of the stories, "Doktor Murkes gesammeltes Schweigen" deserves special attention: I very much enjoy short stories that manage to build an arch over the whole story where everything comes together in the end, creating a satisfying end for all present.
Fantastic story writing.
One of the stories, "Doktor Murkes gesammeltes Schweigen" deserves special attention: I very much enjoy short stories that manage to build an arch over the whole story where everything comes together in the end, creating a satisfying end for all present.
Fantastic story writing.
December 20, 2012
So far so good, I'm able to handle the language without too much bother and enjoy the stories for what they are.
7 Aug 2012
I've found a bit of spare time to get back into these short stories. Amongst other things, they point up aspects of society through narrative description of unexpected, offbeat and bizarre situations.
Intriguing and interesting and thought provoking.
7 Aug 2012
I've found a bit of spare time to get back into these short stories. Amongst other things, they point up aspects of society through narrative description of unexpected, offbeat and bizarre situations.
Intriguing and interesting and thought provoking.
September 7, 2008
Eine Sammlung kurzer Satiren Heinrich Bölls, mit särkeren und schwächeren Texten, aber auch dem wahren Kleinod: "Dr. Murkes gesammeltes Schweigen."
September 27, 2020
Ich finde Heinrich Böll eine fantastische Erzähler. Diese Geschichten - teils nur 2 Seiten lang - sind sehr verschieden. Aber fast alle sind von Blickpunkt der Erzähler geschrieben. das führt dazu, dass der Leser sehr schnell im Bann von Böll schleudert. Die Geschickte sind rührend und teilweise Absurd. Aber alle voller Emotion. Warnung - Bölls Stärke liegt in die Erzählungen, die mit Krieg und Kriegsfolge zu tun sind. Da kann er viele Melancholie und Trauer in der Leser hervorbringen. Das Buch ist gut - brach mir manchmal zum Lachen aus, aber 80% die Geschichte waren haben für mich in Trauer oder Nachdenklichkeit geendet.
December 31, 2021
Nicht nur zur Weihnachtszeit is a collection of satires by Nobel Prize laureate Heinrich Böll.
The stories are mainly set in post-war Germany, where the still-lingering impact of WW2 is palpable in characters' mannerisms and the settings of towns where ruins are still a common sight.
It would be far from the truth for me to say that I understand the meaning behind all of these satires (why does doctor Murke collect silence?). Perhaps it is a generational thing. Having been released in the 1950s and 1960s these stories stem from a time well before my own.
Nonetheless, I found most of the stories quite amusing, all of them dealing with more or less absurd scenarios. The titular satire Nicht nur zur Weihnachtszeit in which a family is forced to celebrate Christmas every single day of the year is probably the strongest one of this collection. This particular story must have had some cultural impact because, somehow, I was familiar with it beforehand.
This is no must-read, but a nice little diversion. Some lighter material to help reach the pledged number of books to read in a year.
The stories are mainly set in post-war Germany, where the still-lingering impact of WW2 is palpable in characters' mannerisms and the settings of towns where ruins are still a common sight.
It would be far from the truth for me to say that I understand the meaning behind all of these satires (why does doctor Murke collect silence?). Perhaps it is a generational thing. Having been released in the 1950s and 1960s these stories stem from a time well before my own.
Nonetheless, I found most of the stories quite amusing, all of them dealing with more or less absurd scenarios. The titular satire Nicht nur zur Weihnachtszeit in which a family is forced to celebrate Christmas every single day of the year is probably the strongest one of this collection. This particular story must have had some cultural impact because, somehow, I was familiar with it beforehand.
This is no must-read, but a nice little diversion. Some lighter material to help reach the pledged number of books to read in a year.
December 18, 2024
For someone looking to improve their German as a foreign language, this book is probably a good choice. It is fairly short and also comparatively straight forward to follow. The story is a kind of satire with Christmas being the target. When I first began to read, the setting was introduced as being just following the second world war and I was expecting this theme to evolve, but the book does not pursue this vein and is more a story of familial tensions.
January 4, 2022
Best stories I have read this year
October 17, 2022
1-3 points, short stories, wenigstens ein paar von den Kurzgeschichten gefallen mir, das ist schon ein Erfolg
April 29, 2023
Großartige kurze Geschichten, die wunderbar überspitzt Einblick in die postfaschistische deutsche Gesellschaft bieten. Vor allem „Keine Träne um Schmeck“ ist ein Meisterwerk
October 30, 2016
Interesting, but in the end the impression is of stories written as exercises or experiments and later collected when Böll became famous.
Displaying 1 - 19 of 19 reviews