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Woman in the Pillory
A gripping, never-before-translated novella by the cult writer of Siblings
Kathrin – five years into a disenchanting marriage – struggles to work the farm with her sister-in-law while her husband Heinrich is away fighting for the Third Reich. To help them with the harvest, Heinrich arranges for Alexei, a Russian prisoner of war, to labour in the fields. Though initially suspicious of this watchful stranger, Kathrin is soon drawn to Alexei, with ruinous consequences.
First published in 1956, Woman in the Pillory is a formative novella by one of East Germany’s most significant writers, showcasing Brigitte Reimann’s vivid ideological engagement with the legacy of Nazi Germany and the Communist drive to create ‘a new kind of person’ following the devastation of the war.
Translated by Lucy Jones
Kathrin – five years into a disenchanting marriage – struggles to work the farm with her sister-in-law while her husband Heinrich is away fighting for the Third Reich. To help them with the harvest, Heinrich arranges for Alexei, a Russian prisoner of war, to labour in the fields. Though initially suspicious of this watchful stranger, Kathrin is soon drawn to Alexei, with ruinous consequences.
First published in 1956, Woman in the Pillory is a formative novella by one of East Germany’s most significant writers, showcasing Brigitte Reimann’s vivid ideological engagement with the legacy of Nazi Germany and the Communist drive to create ‘a new kind of person’ following the devastation of the war.
Translated by Lucy Jones
146 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 1, 1969
9 people are currently reading
375 people want to read
About the author
Brigitte Reimann
31 books46 followersBrigitte Reimann (1933 - 1973) was a German writer who is best known for her posthumously published novel, Franziska Linkerhand.
Brigitte Reimann wrote her first amateur play at the age of fifteen. In 1950 she was awarded the first prize in an amateur drama comeptition by the Berlin theater Volksbühne. After graduating, Reimann worked as teacher, bookseller and reporter. After a miscarriage in 1954, she attempted suicide. In 1960, she started to work at the brown coal mine Schwarze Pumpe, where she and her second husband Siegfried Pitschmann headed a circle of writing workers. There, she writes the narrative Ankunft im Alltag, which is regarded as a masterpiece of socialist realism.
When troops of the Warsaw Pact states invaded the ČSSR on August 20, 1968 as a reaction to liberalisations during the Prague Spring, Reimann refused to sign the declaration by the East German Writers' Association approving of the measure.
On February 22, 1973, Reimann died of cancer at the age of 39.
During the last ten years of her life Reimann worked at the novel Franziska Linkerhand. At the time of her death, the last chapter had just been started. In the following year the novel was published in an heavily censored edition. Not until 1998 was the uncensored version published.
Brigitte Reimann wrote her first amateur play at the age of fifteen. In 1950 she was awarded the first prize in an amateur drama comeptition by the Berlin theater Volksbühne. After graduating, Reimann worked as teacher, bookseller and reporter. After a miscarriage in 1954, she attempted suicide. In 1960, she started to work at the brown coal mine Schwarze Pumpe, where she and her second husband Siegfried Pitschmann headed a circle of writing workers. There, she writes the narrative Ankunft im Alltag, which is regarded as a masterpiece of socialist realism.
When troops of the Warsaw Pact states invaded the ČSSR on August 20, 1968 as a reaction to liberalisations during the Prague Spring, Reimann refused to sign the declaration by the East German Writers' Association approving of the measure.
On February 22, 1973, Reimann died of cancer at the age of 39.
During the last ten years of her life Reimann worked at the novel Franziska Linkerhand. At the time of her death, the last chapter had just been started. In the following year the novel was published in an heavily censored edition. Not until 1998 was the uncensored version published.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 33 reviews
February 13, 2026
East German writer Brigitte Reimann’s 1956 debut was a controversial bestseller. Reimann presents a snapshot of life in rural Germany during WW2 centred on a doomed love affair between a lonely farmer’s wife and the Russian prisoner-of-war assigned to labour on her land. It opens in 1943, Kathrin’s husband Heinrich is serving in the army, she’s left behind with his older sister Frieda. Frieda and Heinrich are expansive, domineering personalities whose very presence intimidates diffident, insecure Kathrin. She dreads Heinrich coming home on leave, disgusted by his tales of slaughter. When POW Alexei arrives, he works by day and by night is locked away in a barn, Frieda insists they take every precaution against him, for her Russians are less than human. However, Kathrin’s refusal to abandon her belief in compassion opens up a space for dialogue with Alexei that slowly turns to love. But the penalty for German women consorting with the enemy is horrendous, and eventually Kathrin faces a devastating reckoning.
Reimann’s novella runs through to the end of the war, she’s clearly preoccupied with possibilities for Germany’s future. Although Reimann’s strongest literary influence was Anna Seghers, her territory overlaps with elements of West Germany’s so-called rubble literature (Trümmer literatur). But where that revolved around men’s experiences of war and their difficult return at its end, Reimann's focus is on women - men’s hypocrisy, women’s isolation, their vulnerability and the threat of male violence, the repressive gossip culture that kept many in line. At the time Reimann’s book was considered quite daring, its publication was held up because East Germany’s leadership was negotiating with the Soviet Union over German War criminals, so Reimann’s references to German atrocities and German guilt were less than welcome.
Reimann portrays wartime Germany as riven with conflicts and clashing hierarchies. Lange the local Nazi functionary is fiercely loyal to the Party but unpopular with much of the community. Characters like Frieda and Heinrich are less ideologically driven yet embrace the prejudices of the era. Kathrin’s older neighbour Trude acts as a mentor, she too is uncomfortable with the direction Germany’s taken, the expectation that German women shouldn’t “pity” the enemy. She’s a stark contrast to Frieda whose lording over of land, animals and people is wholly in keeping with a “Nazi” mentality. Ostensibly realist, Reimann’s narrative often leans towards allegory. She introduces themes of birth and rebirth, the union between Alexei and Kathrin prefigures the formation of East Germany as a satellite of the Soviet Union. As does idealistic Alexei’s insistence that the future world will be one of peace, his assertions of solidarity between workers promote the Soviet Union’s brand of Communism as the answer to all wrongs. So much so that Reimann’s narrative sometimes threatens to tip over into propaganda. But Reimann attempts not to cement her characters as necessarily heroic or villainous, even Frieda and Heinrich are shown to be capable of shame and self-reflection.
Reimann’s style can be uneven, the earlier sections are a little awkward, the concluding ones far more assured. There’s a naivety to the storytelling at times but this works well in tandem with Reimann’s structuring of Kathrin’s journey from helpless innocence to defiant experience, her initial obliviousness to the harsh realities of Nazi Germany. Kathrin’s subsequent stoicism in the face of humiliation and torture can feel a bit overdone. It’s also difficult to be sure what aspects are fully Reimann’s and what compromises she may have made to secure publication. But, despite its flaws, I found this utterly absorbing both as a story and as a slice of social and cultural history. Translated by Lucy Jones.
Thanks to Netgalley and Penguin Modern Classics for an ARC
Reimann’s novella runs through to the end of the war, she’s clearly preoccupied with possibilities for Germany’s future. Although Reimann’s strongest literary influence was Anna Seghers, her territory overlaps with elements of West Germany’s so-called rubble literature (Trümmer literatur). But where that revolved around men’s experiences of war and their difficult return at its end, Reimann's focus is on women - men’s hypocrisy, women’s isolation, their vulnerability and the threat of male violence, the repressive gossip culture that kept many in line. At the time Reimann’s book was considered quite daring, its publication was held up because East Germany’s leadership was negotiating with the Soviet Union over German War criminals, so Reimann’s references to German atrocities and German guilt were less than welcome.
Reimann portrays wartime Germany as riven with conflicts and clashing hierarchies. Lange the local Nazi functionary is fiercely loyal to the Party but unpopular with much of the community. Characters like Frieda and Heinrich are less ideologically driven yet embrace the prejudices of the era. Kathrin’s older neighbour Trude acts as a mentor, she too is uncomfortable with the direction Germany’s taken, the expectation that German women shouldn’t “pity” the enemy. She’s a stark contrast to Frieda whose lording over of land, animals and people is wholly in keeping with a “Nazi” mentality. Ostensibly realist, Reimann’s narrative often leans towards allegory. She introduces themes of birth and rebirth, the union between Alexei and Kathrin prefigures the formation of East Germany as a satellite of the Soviet Union. As does idealistic Alexei’s insistence that the future world will be one of peace, his assertions of solidarity between workers promote the Soviet Union’s brand of Communism as the answer to all wrongs. So much so that Reimann’s narrative sometimes threatens to tip over into propaganda. But Reimann attempts not to cement her characters as necessarily heroic or villainous, even Frieda and Heinrich are shown to be capable of shame and self-reflection.
Reimann’s style can be uneven, the earlier sections are a little awkward, the concluding ones far more assured. There’s a naivety to the storytelling at times but this works well in tandem with Reimann’s structuring of Kathrin’s journey from helpless innocence to defiant experience, her initial obliviousness to the harsh realities of Nazi Germany. Kathrin’s subsequent stoicism in the face of humiliation and torture can feel a bit overdone. It’s also difficult to be sure what aspects are fully Reimann’s and what compromises she may have made to secure publication. But, despite its flaws, I found this utterly absorbing both as a story and as a slice of social and cultural history. Translated by Lucy Jones.
Thanks to Netgalley and Penguin Modern Classics for an ARC
November 4, 2025
2.5 stars - spoilers below
I seem to be an outlier in my opinion of this book as I found it unsatisfyingly simplistic and straightforward with lots of clichés in the writing like the one quoted above. The whole thing read more like a fable than a modern novel to me with people doing and saying things that are both predictable in terms of storytelling and yet inconsistent with any kind of psychological realism and subjective interiority.
For example, the German wife and Russian (he's actually from Ukraine but describes himself as Russian) POW fall into insta-love and having exchanged barely a word are suddenly passionately bound together ('he knew that she needed him, especially now, and that he had to go to her and protect her'). At the point at which he is evoking a better world, referencing Russian communism, the short speech is couched in romantically idealised terms with no reference to ideology: 'We'll change the world. Wars don't have to come and go like summer and winter. One day, there'll be no more poverty, no enemies or hatred. People will live in peace, and everyone will have enough to eat and be happy' - it reads to me like a child's wishlist.
Some developments are just weird and unexplained: 'suddenly, she grabbed her chest and fell without a sound'. And I always have a problem in books when a perfectly ordinary person withstands interrogation by a professional group, here the Nazi SS: 'she didn't speak. This pale, slight woman was as tough as a willow switch and didn't break. The men might as well have tried to force a confession from the blank wall.' Hmm, really? The SS were notorious for their torture, the running of the concentration and death camps and were indicted for genocide and crimes against humanity yet are unable to break a 25-year old village woman? The message that her love kept her will intact is another romantic trope that I suspect doesn't bear much relation to reality.
The saving character for me was, surprisingly, Heinrich, the German husband who is in the army. He is the only character who undergoes some kind of development and has a psychological 'journey', however short.
Overall, I found the writing a bit flat and the plot too romanticised and slight to really engage me - whether this is a translation issue or not, I can't tell.
Thanks anyway to Penguin for an ARC via NetGalley
People are devouring each other, like packs of wolves.
I seem to be an outlier in my opinion of this book as I found it unsatisfyingly simplistic and straightforward with lots of clichés in the writing like the one quoted above. The whole thing read more like a fable than a modern novel to me with people doing and saying things that are both predictable in terms of storytelling and yet inconsistent with any kind of psychological realism and subjective interiority.
For example, the German wife and Russian (he's actually from Ukraine but describes himself as Russian) POW fall into insta-love and having exchanged barely a word are suddenly passionately bound together ('he knew that she needed him, especially now, and that he had to go to her and protect her'). At the point at which he is evoking a better world, referencing Russian communism, the short speech is couched in romantically idealised terms with no reference to ideology: 'We'll change the world. Wars don't have to come and go like summer and winter. One day, there'll be no more poverty, no enemies or hatred. People will live in peace, and everyone will have enough to eat and be happy' - it reads to me like a child's wishlist.
Some developments are just weird and unexplained: 'suddenly, she grabbed her chest and fell without a sound'. And I always have a problem in books when a perfectly ordinary person withstands interrogation by a professional group, here the Nazi SS: 'she didn't speak. This pale, slight woman was as tough as a willow switch and didn't break. The men might as well have tried to force a confession from the blank wall.' Hmm, really? The SS were notorious for their torture, the running of the concentration and death camps and were indicted for genocide and crimes against humanity yet are unable to break a 25-year old village woman? The message that her love kept her will intact is another romantic trope that I suspect doesn't bear much relation to reality.
The saving character for me was, surprisingly, Heinrich, the German husband who is in the army. He is the only character who undergoes some kind of development and has a psychological 'journey', however short.
Overall, I found the writing a bit flat and the plot too romanticised and slight to really engage me - whether this is a translation issue or not, I can't tell.
Thanks anyway to Penguin for an ARC via NetGalley
September 20, 2025
I am a sucker for rediscovered 'little gems' and this is an excellent one. Published in 1956, it is set in Germany in the middle of World War II.
Kathrin and Heinrich have been married for five years but there is not much love between them.
When Heinrich is off to the front, it falls to Kathrin and Heinrich's sister Frieda take care of the farm.
The work is too much for the two women and they 'get' a Russian POW to give them a hand. And then Kathrin falls in love with the Russian...and it can only end badly...
I loved it. Reimann chooses the perspective of those staying behind; the war is happening elsewhere, and yet it permeates whatever is left of ordinary life. What is allowed and what isn't? Enormous tension and suspense builds up around the forbidden love and the fear of being discovered.
All that in just 120 pages. A great find by Penguin.
4,5 rounded up
Kathrin and Heinrich have been married for five years but there is not much love between them.
When Heinrich is off to the front, it falls to Kathrin and Heinrich's sister Frieda take care of the farm.
The work is too much for the two women and they 'get' a Russian POW to give them a hand. And then Kathrin falls in love with the Russian...and it can only end badly...
I loved it. Reimann chooses the perspective of those staying behind; the war is happening elsewhere, and yet it permeates whatever is left of ordinary life. What is allowed and what isn't? Enormous tension and suspense builds up around the forbidden love and the fear of being discovered.
All that in just 120 pages. A great find by Penguin.
4,5 rounded up
December 31, 2025
Set against the backdrop of the Second World War, this novella by Brigitte Reimann tells the story of a forbidden relationship between a German woman and a Russian prisoner of war. Kathrin, the woman in question, has been married for five years to a farmer in her village, Heinrich Martens. She lives a largely subservient life, accustomed to obeying her husband, her sister-in-law Frieda Martens, and the unspoken rules of her community. When Heinrich is called to the front to serve his fatherland, the burden of farm work falls on Kathrin and Frieda. To compensate for his absence, Heinrich arranges for a Russian prisoner of war to be sent to help on the farm.
The prisoner, Alexei Ivanovich Luniev, is initially treated as something less than human by the family. He is made to live in the barn, given food but denied dignity, and regarded more as an animal than a person. This treatment begins to trouble Kathrin, who questions why a human being should be reduced to such conditions. Through her conversations with Alexei, Kathrin starts to understand herself and the world she inhabits more clearly. Gradually, she becomes less submissive, culminating in her demand that Alexei be allowed to eat with the family at the dining table. Frieda, initially outraged by this transgression of social and racial boundaries, eventually yields, unsettled by the change in Kathrin’s demeanor, which has become almost unrecognisable to her.
While Woman in the Pillory is framed as a love story, it carries a clear political and moral message. First published in 1956, only eleven years after the end of the war, the novella reflects an early attempt in East German literature to confront questions of guilt, responsibility, and dehumanisation. Much of the story unfolds through Kathrin’s internal conflict between good and evil. She comes to realise that there are good and bad Germans, just as there are good and bad Russians. This realisation becomes especially painful when she learns that her husband, Heinrich, has participated in the killing of women and children under orders from his superiors. In contrast, Alexei, despite being the designated enemy, reveals kindness and moral integrity. In placing these figures side by side, Brigitte Reimann exposes the hollowness of wartime propaganda and suggests that dignity and humanity persist even in the most oppressive circumstances.
The prisoner, Alexei Ivanovich Luniev, is initially treated as something less than human by the family. He is made to live in the barn, given food but denied dignity, and regarded more as an animal than a person. This treatment begins to trouble Kathrin, who questions why a human being should be reduced to such conditions. Through her conversations with Alexei, Kathrin starts to understand herself and the world she inhabits more clearly. Gradually, she becomes less submissive, culminating in her demand that Alexei be allowed to eat with the family at the dining table. Frieda, initially outraged by this transgression of social and racial boundaries, eventually yields, unsettled by the change in Kathrin’s demeanor, which has become almost unrecognisable to her.
While Woman in the Pillory is framed as a love story, it carries a clear political and moral message. First published in 1956, only eleven years after the end of the war, the novella reflects an early attempt in East German literature to confront questions of guilt, responsibility, and dehumanisation. Much of the story unfolds through Kathrin’s internal conflict between good and evil. She comes to realise that there are good and bad Germans, just as there are good and bad Russians. This realisation becomes especially painful when she learns that her husband, Heinrich, has participated in the killing of women and children under orders from his superiors. In contrast, Alexei, despite being the designated enemy, reveals kindness and moral integrity. In placing these figures side by side, Brigitte Reimann exposes the hollowness of wartime propaganda and suggests that dignity and humanity persist even in the most oppressive circumstances.
March 24, 2026
3.5/5
Not as good as Siblings, but still a very interesting read. Very preachy and heavy-handed in places where Brigitte lets her own communist ideals overwhelm the story, which leans too much for my liking into allegorical archetypes.
Not as good as Siblings, but still a very interesting read. Very preachy and heavy-handed in places where Brigitte lets her own communist ideals overwhelm the story, which leans too much for my liking into allegorical archetypes.
November 16, 2025
4.5⭐️
Thank you to NetGalley and Penguin Press UK for providing this book for review consideration. All opinions are my own.
This simple tale broke my heart.
Set in a small rural community in 1940s Germany, this is the story of forbidden love and the desire for peace and freedom. It mocks the hypocrisy of women being pilloried for doing what men do freely, as well as eugenics dictating who we should love. Impressive, for a book written so long ago.
So much is packed into this novella. The writing is pristine - beautiful, but clear. No words are wasted in conveying its messages. I would absolutely recommend this to anyone wanting to read a short, translated, little-known classic.
Thank you to NetGalley and Penguin Press UK for providing this book for review consideration. All opinions are my own.
This simple tale broke my heart.
Set in a small rural community in 1940s Germany, this is the story of forbidden love and the desire for peace and freedom. It mocks the hypocrisy of women being pilloried for doing what men do freely, as well as eugenics dictating who we should love. Impressive, for a book written so long ago.
So much is packed into this novella. The writing is pristine - beautiful, but clear. No words are wasted in conveying its messages. I would absolutely recommend this to anyone wanting to read a short, translated, little-known classic.
December 25, 2025
“They're people like you or me and they love each other like we do, and you can't condemn them for that. The man's Russian but, my God, he can't help that. You can't help being German. Being born in a different country doesn't make him worse than us.”
.
I think I have started and restarted this review countless times. Nothing I write down seems adequate to really describe how I feel about this book. A book that I carelessly requested to read on netgalley, that emporium where somehow an amateur like myself can get free books. A small book with the depth of a 1,000 page book.
.
You see, at the core is a romantic trope of forbidden love. A simple love between two people. However, it is more than that - much more. Love and kindness in the face of a murderous totalitarian regime. All this takes place not in the crunching industry of cities, but on gentle rolling German farmlands.
.
You feel the tension in this. It seeps through the pages. Alongside the tension are the moments of kindness, empathy and love. There’s occasional moments of dark humor. But we ultimately know how the story ends. Gossip really is deadly.
.
This is up there for one of the best books I’ve read this year. A book that illustrates so well the power of writing to open worlds, to trigger depths of emotions that I find no other medium ever really quite achieves.
.
As ever, thank you to penguin for publishing and to netgalley for giving me the opportunity to be so greatly moved.
.
I think I have started and restarted this review countless times. Nothing I write down seems adequate to really describe how I feel about this book. A book that I carelessly requested to read on netgalley, that emporium where somehow an amateur like myself can get free books. A small book with the depth of a 1,000 page book.
.
You see, at the core is a romantic trope of forbidden love. A simple love between two people. However, it is more than that - much more. Love and kindness in the face of a murderous totalitarian regime. All this takes place not in the crunching industry of cities, but on gentle rolling German farmlands.
.
You feel the tension in this. It seeps through the pages. Alongside the tension are the moments of kindness, empathy and love. There’s occasional moments of dark humor. But we ultimately know how the story ends. Gossip really is deadly.
.
This is up there for one of the best books I’ve read this year. A book that illustrates so well the power of writing to open worlds, to trigger depths of emotions that I find no other medium ever really quite achieves.
.
As ever, thank you to penguin for publishing and to netgalley for giving me the opportunity to be so greatly moved.
November 15, 2025
This is the best written book from an East German writer I’ve come across, but it’s still shockingly direct with its Soviet propaganda. I enjoyed reading this much more than “Siblings” but I don’t think it was nearly as thought provoking. I don’t think the author intended for the soldier husband to be the most compelling character in the novel, and certainly the only character that showed development from the start to the finish. Soviet man = savior. Germans = either bad guys or people who haven’t “woken up” to the Soviet man’s ideas. It’s worth a read, but the average rating on here feels a bit too high. (For me the first half was a solid 2 and the second half brought it to a low 3.)
March 6, 2026
A beautiful, short novel exploring life in a small German village, with particular focus on Kathrin, the wife of a farmer-turned-soldier, during the second world war.
It is exceptionally moving and is a clear-eyed capture of life in the period. I devoured it within a day but suspect I will be thinking of it for many weeks to come.
It is exceptionally moving and is a clear-eyed capture of life in the period. I devoured it within a day but suspect I will be thinking of it for many weeks to come.
January 5, 2026
Such a devastating book. From the beginning my heart was with the main protagonist Kathrin. Her tale is one of love and compassion in a time where that was scarce. This book was beautiful, tender, raw and violent.
March 6, 2026
Well that was really tragic. I liked that the translator decided the farmers in Nazi Germany should say “nowt”, also it’s not really Reimann without a woman who loves her brother a bit too much
March 10, 2025
…Svakoga je dana bio sve uvjereniji da je ta žena dobra i da u njoj drijema snaga koja bi, kada se jednom probudi, tu ženu mogla naučiti da voli i mrzi.
Moćna, tužna, naizgled jednostavna priča koja je sve samo ne jednostavna.
Moćna, tužna, naizgled jednostavna priča koja je sve samo ne jednostavna.
January 10, 2026
’you have it be careful. In this country, among these people, even friendship is dangerous.’
I have been intrigued by this ever since reading Siblings and it did not disappoint. Personally I think the narrative is much more consistent and tightly structured than Siblings was. I saw another review that summarised the difference by saying that Siblings was more nuanced but Women in the Pillory was more enjoyable which I think is fair.
I have been intrigued by this ever since reading Siblings and it did not disappoint. Personally I think the narrative is much more consistent and tightly structured than Siblings was. I saw another review that summarised the difference by saying that Siblings was more nuanced but Women in the Pillory was more enjoyable which I think is fair.
October 17, 2025
Rating 4.5 stars
Review - Woman in the Pillory by Brigitte Reimann, tr from German by Lucy Jones opens with a young woman named Kathrin reading a telegram from her husband, Heinrich Marten who’s at the war front fighting for the Third Reich. The telegram says he will be home on a 3 day leave. Instead of feeling happy, Kathrin cowers with fear. In five years of their marriage, though Heinrich hasn't been violent with her, he hasn't cared for her either. She was pawned off in marriage along with a few acres of farm land and the land mattered to the farmer in Heinrich. Heinrich bonded well with his unmarried elder sister Freida who adored him & bossed over everyone else including Kathrin. Kathrin’s well practiced subservience & emotional indifference gives rise to a tiny ember of hatred for her husband when she learns about his killings at the front and badges of honour earned for it. The ember fans into a full fledged fire that engulfs the Martens’ farm, house and lives when a Russian prisoner of war, Alexei, arrives as a helping hand.
A tender companionship rooted in similar ideals and love blossoms between Kathrin and Alexei. Their respect and fondness for each other grows organically and this is no scintillating story of their infidelity with tantalising chemistry between lovers. As they swing between hope and despair, thinking of a future together, we know this love story between a German soldier’s wife and an enemy, a Russian POW, a brazen transgression, will have horrific consequences, adequately hinted at by the title.
Not just a tragic story of forbidden love, Woman in the Pillory comes fortified with a strong message to the world - that wars be avoided at all costs, that no human race is superior, that there be a world that knows only kindness & peace without a trace of hatred. The climax felt over dramatic. But the smooth flowing prose rich in actions and emotions, a sparkling translation, well fleshed out characters (the most impressive arc is of Heinrich) make this an engaging read.
Thank you Netgalley and Penguin UK books for the ARC.
Review - Woman in the Pillory by Brigitte Reimann, tr from German by Lucy Jones opens with a young woman named Kathrin reading a telegram from her husband, Heinrich Marten who’s at the war front fighting for the Third Reich. The telegram says he will be home on a 3 day leave. Instead of feeling happy, Kathrin cowers with fear. In five years of their marriage, though Heinrich hasn't been violent with her, he hasn't cared for her either. She was pawned off in marriage along with a few acres of farm land and the land mattered to the farmer in Heinrich. Heinrich bonded well with his unmarried elder sister Freida who adored him & bossed over everyone else including Kathrin. Kathrin’s well practiced subservience & emotional indifference gives rise to a tiny ember of hatred for her husband when she learns about his killings at the front and badges of honour earned for it. The ember fans into a full fledged fire that engulfs the Martens’ farm, house and lives when a Russian prisoner of war, Alexei, arrives as a helping hand.
A tender companionship rooted in similar ideals and love blossoms between Kathrin and Alexei. Their respect and fondness for each other grows organically and this is no scintillating story of their infidelity with tantalising chemistry between lovers. As they swing between hope and despair, thinking of a future together, we know this love story between a German soldier’s wife and an enemy, a Russian POW, a brazen transgression, will have horrific consequences, adequately hinted at by the title.
Not just a tragic story of forbidden love, Woman in the Pillory comes fortified with a strong message to the world - that wars be avoided at all costs, that no human race is superior, that there be a world that knows only kindness & peace without a trace of hatred. The climax felt over dramatic. But the smooth flowing prose rich in actions and emotions, a sparkling translation, well fleshed out characters (the most impressive arc is of Heinrich) make this an engaging read.
Thank you Netgalley and Penguin UK books for the ARC.
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December 16, 2025📘 𝗦𝗼𝗺𝗲 𝗯𝗼𝗼𝗸𝘀 𝗱𝗼 𝗻𝗼𝘁 𝗮𝗻𝗻𝗼𝘂𝗻𝗰𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗶𝗿 𝗽𝗼𝘄𝗲𝗿; 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝘆 𝗿𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗮𝗹 𝗶𝘁 𝘀𝗹𝗼𝘄𝗹𝘆, 𝘀𝗲𝘁𝘁𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗶𝗻𝘁𝗼 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗱𝗲𝗿’𝘀 𝗺𝗶𝗻𝗱 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗿𝗲𝗳𝘂𝘀𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗼 𝗳𝗮𝗱𝗲. Brigitte Reimann’s 𝘞𝘰𝘮𝘢𝘯 𝘪𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘗𝘪𝘭𝘭𝘰𝘳𝘺 is such a work.
✒️ From its opening pages, the narrative unfolds with remarkable ease. Reimann’s prose is restrained and assured, never hurried, never indulgent. Each scene serves a clear purpose, contributing to a story that feels both deliberate and finely crafted.
🏺 Set during the final period of World War II and extending into its aftermath, the novel is deeply rooted in its historical context. Reimann shows how war — and the transition out of it — reshapes morality, fractures communities, and alters individual lives. The story captures the tension of both wartime and post-war society: judgment, fear, and a quiet, collective cruelty that can exist among ordinary people.
🤍 At its core, the novel is also a love story, intertwined with a broader meditation on survival and human connection. Reimann resists melodrama, allowing emotion to accumulate gradually and with restraint. The characters emerge as flawed, vulnerable, and profoundly human, drawing the reader into their moral dilemmas and personal reckonings.
🕊️ Ultimately, 𝘞𝘰𝘮𝘢𝘯 𝘪𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘗𝘪𝘭𝘭𝘰𝘳𝘺 offers much of what one seeks in a World War II–era narrative: stylistic precision, historical gravity, moral complexity, and a lasting emotional resonance. I found it a deeply affecting read — a thoughtful and intimate exploration of human nature under the most unforgiving circumstances.
Thank you to @penguinukbooks for the review copy via NetGalley. All opinions are my own.
✒️ From its opening pages, the narrative unfolds with remarkable ease. Reimann’s prose is restrained and assured, never hurried, never indulgent. Each scene serves a clear purpose, contributing to a story that feels both deliberate and finely crafted.
🏺 Set during the final period of World War II and extending into its aftermath, the novel is deeply rooted in its historical context. Reimann shows how war — and the transition out of it — reshapes morality, fractures communities, and alters individual lives. The story captures the tension of both wartime and post-war society: judgment, fear, and a quiet, collective cruelty that can exist among ordinary people.
🤍 At its core, the novel is also a love story, intertwined with a broader meditation on survival and human connection. Reimann resists melodrama, allowing emotion to accumulate gradually and with restraint. The characters emerge as flawed, vulnerable, and profoundly human, drawing the reader into their moral dilemmas and personal reckonings.
🕊️ Ultimately, 𝘞𝘰𝘮𝘢𝘯 𝘪𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘗𝘪𝘭𝘭𝘰𝘳𝘺 offers much of what one seeks in a World War II–era narrative: stylistic precision, historical gravity, moral complexity, and a lasting emotional resonance. I found it a deeply affecting read — a thoughtful and intimate exploration of human nature under the most unforgiving circumstances.
Thank you to @penguinukbooks for the review copy via NetGalley. All opinions are my own.
October 19, 2025
The story follows a young woman in 1943, living in a small German village. Kathrin is married—neither unhappily nor happily—to a farmer who has gone to the front, leaving her in the care of his older, matronly sister. To help run the farm, a Soviet prisoner of war is sent to work as forced labor, tending to the animals and the fields. The captive is young, kind, and idealistic. Soon, trouble brews, and the novella confronts us with the cost of love in wartime Germany, the petty cruelties of those who exploit an oppressive system, and the fragile power of hope.
The novella is incredibly powerful, and it’s astonishing that it has only now been translated into English. More than a depiction of Nazi horrors or how they warped ordinary minds, it is a study of the moral decay that festers among small people—those willing to go to great lengths to secure even the smallest advantage. It also captures the terrifying consequences of collective inaction: the many who “follow orders” or turn a blind eye to injustice, whether out of fear or convenience. In its own quiet way, this reads like a fictional counterpart to Hannah Arendt.
I highly recommend it to anyone interested in how totalitarian thinking corrodes the lives of ordinary people—a theme perhaps more relevant now than at any time since the end of the Second World War.
My thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing an advance copy in exchange for an honest review.
The novella is incredibly powerful, and it’s astonishing that it has only now been translated into English. More than a depiction of Nazi horrors or how they warped ordinary minds, it is a study of the moral decay that festers among small people—those willing to go to great lengths to secure even the smallest advantage. It also captures the terrifying consequences of collective inaction: the many who “follow orders” or turn a blind eye to injustice, whether out of fear or convenience. In its own quiet way, this reads like a fictional counterpart to Hannah Arendt.
I highly recommend it to anyone interested in how totalitarian thinking corrodes the lives of ordinary people—a theme perhaps more relevant now than at any time since the end of the Second World War.
My thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing an advance copy in exchange for an honest review.
January 30, 2026
Set in Germany during the Second World War, Woman in the Pillory follows the story of Kathrin, a woman trapped in a loveless marriage. When her husband is sent off to war, Kathrin and her sister-in-law, Frieda, struggle to maintain the farm they live on. Soon, they are sent a prisoner of war named Alexei to help with the work.
Troubled by the inhumane way Frieda treats Alexei, Kathrin begins to pity the prisoner. In her effort to reduce the harm caused by her sister-in-law, she spends more time with him, gradually forming a connection that challenges the strict boundaries of her world. This connection turns to attraction, which blossoms into a forbidden love, ultimately leading to disastrous consequences for all.
This was an odd one. I loved the idea of the story and enjoyed it for the most part; however, it felt at once too bare-bones and too melodramatic. While there are several messages and themes lurking beneath the main storyline, the novella’s short length doesn’t allow them to breathe, making them come across as somewhat ham-fisted at best.
Characterisation also suffers, with the only character to see any real development being Kathrin’s husband, Heinrich, which was deeply frustrating.
Overall, as I said, I did enjoy the book, but I felt it could have been so much more if the ideas had been given more room to develop in a full-length novel.
With thanks to Penguin for the ARC.
Troubled by the inhumane way Frieda treats Alexei, Kathrin begins to pity the prisoner. In her effort to reduce the harm caused by her sister-in-law, she spends more time with him, gradually forming a connection that challenges the strict boundaries of her world. This connection turns to attraction, which blossoms into a forbidden love, ultimately leading to disastrous consequences for all.
This was an odd one. I loved the idea of the story and enjoyed it for the most part; however, it felt at once too bare-bones and too melodramatic. While there are several messages and themes lurking beneath the main storyline, the novella’s short length doesn’t allow them to breathe, making them come across as somewhat ham-fisted at best.
Characterisation also suffers, with the only character to see any real development being Kathrin’s husband, Heinrich, which was deeply frustrating.
Overall, as I said, I did enjoy the book, but I felt it could have been so much more if the ideas had been given more room to develop in a full-length novel.
With thanks to Penguin for the ARC.
January 1, 2026
I really enjoyed 'Siblings' from the same author when it was published in translation last year, so was very much looking forward to this. I perhaps didn't enjoy it quite so much, but this again highlights the wonderful depth of literature out there for an English-speaking audience to discover, with the help of wonderful translators (in this case in the person of Lucy Jones.)
Set during WW2, Kathrin runs the family farm with her sister-in-law Frieda. Her husband Heinrich is away fighting (with the occasional visit home) and he decides on one of his visits that he could get a Russian POW to help out on the farm. So arrives Alexei, and Kathrin sympathetically treats him well, rather than just as a 'brute'. You know where this is going, right? As the two get involved in a relationship the consequences are manifold, from family to the local community.
Short but involving, this is a fascinating work of fiction first published way back in 1969. Worth reading, definitely, as a work of historical fiction but also as a social commentary on a dark period of German history. A strong 4 to 4.5 stars.
Set during WW2, Kathrin runs the family farm with her sister-in-law Frieda. Her husband Heinrich is away fighting (with the occasional visit home) and he decides on one of his visits that he could get a Russian POW to help out on the farm. So arrives Alexei, and Kathrin sympathetically treats him well, rather than just as a 'brute'. You know where this is going, right? As the two get involved in a relationship the consequences are manifold, from family to the local community.
Short but involving, this is a fascinating work of fiction first published way back in 1969. Worth reading, definitely, as a work of historical fiction but also as a social commentary on a dark period of German history. A strong 4 to 4.5 stars.
January 6, 2026
This is exactly the kind of book I am predisposed to enjoy in terms of when it is written, subject matter and style of writing. I also love the sense of rediscovering something that was published a long time ago but which has been (for whatever reason) lost until recently. This was originally published in 1956 but has not been translated in to English until now. The translation is crisp, clear and very readable. The romance and politics are underpinned by a very lucid prose style. Even reading it now, so very long after the events in the novel, after the end of the war, the emotions are raw. I recommend it as an excellent piece of writing as well as a glimpse into a view of the war as it was experienced in a German village.
February 9, 2026
The last Reimann I read, I described as a ‘gift’. I’d have to use the same word to describe this book !!! Feel incredibly grateful to live in a time her work is being translated to English.
Historical writing without the cool masculine detachment. The quotidian, distinctly gendered life of nazi Germany. We all know about this time period, yes - we know actions of war and systemic killing, but Reimann opens the door and shows us how patriarchy operated during this time. A profoundly feminist work, both in its unapologetic depiction of women’s lives but also its anti-militaristic themes.
Fascinating !!!!
Historical writing without the cool masculine detachment. The quotidian, distinctly gendered life of nazi Germany. We all know about this time period, yes - we know actions of war and systemic killing, but Reimann opens the door and shows us how patriarchy operated during this time. A profoundly feminist work, both in its unapologetic depiction of women’s lives but also its anti-militaristic themes.
Fascinating !!!!
January 5, 2026
A novella set in wartime Germany, which I picked up because I was interested in the author—celebrated and outspoken and from East Germany (just found a 2023 New Yorker article about how Reimann “electrified” socialist realism).
While the storyline doesn’t break molds, the main character’s development is worthwhile to follow. She finds her willpower and morals in the face of her husband’s violent acts of war; the plot follows the upending of her misery as her husband’s sister requests and they take on a Russian POW as a farmhand.
While the storyline doesn’t break molds, the main character’s development is worthwhile to follow. She finds her willpower and morals in the face of her husband’s violent acts of war; the plot follows the upending of her misery as her husband’s sister requests and they take on a Russian POW as a farmhand.
January 31, 2026
A harrowing and haunting look into Germany during the war and how deeply entrenched society was with Nazi ideology, propaganda & discrimination tactics. It's so hard to read about the way Germans treated other ethnicities and the disturbing stories about prisoners of war and yet I was truly submerged in the story and they all felt so real to me. I think this is largely in part to the background of Brigitte Reimann (whose book Siblings I also really liked). Genuinely just harrowing and unfortunately all too prevalent.
September 30, 2025
This is a powerful novella. It's short but contains so much--love and fear, hope and despair, cruelty and kindness, idealism and reality, denial and self discovery. The story is told primarily from the point of view of Katrin, although occasionally readers get a glimpse into the minds of other characters. Katrin is a young woman who has been married for 5 year to Heinrich, who is away from his farm fighting against Russians in the German army. Theirs is not a happy marriage and Katrin is not unhappy that he's gone. Heinrich's sister, Frieda, also lives at the farm and she and Katrin try to do everything, which proves to be too much. Home for a few days on leave, Heinrich says he'll have a prisoner of war sent to work on the farm. Before long, Alexei arrives. He's from Ukraine where his village has been wiped out and his family disappeared. He has high hopes for the kind of society that Russia will create after the war is over, but largely keeps his thoughts to himself and does what he's told. Frieda treats him like a sub-human creature. Katrin sees through the common stereotypes about 'the enemy' and she and Alexei gradually become closer and closer. Village tongues start to wag and eventually, serious repercussions result.
This is an excellent book. The writing is beautiful and not a word is wasted. Reimann's descriptions of the farm at night or the thoughts of the characters grabbed me from the start. The book was originally published in 1956 and Reimann lived in East Germany, although she died quite young. So it was a decade after the war ended--enough time to see that the dreams Alexei described, which I'm sure were those of many real people, did not come to fruition. And although the book is short, Katrin's evolution and growth of self awareness were aspects of the book that I quite liked. This is a book that can be read and re-read with new insights appearing each time. I highly recommend it.
Thanks to NetGalley, and the publisher for a digital review copy.
This is an excellent book. The writing is beautiful and not a word is wasted. Reimann's descriptions of the farm at night or the thoughts of the characters grabbed me from the start. The book was originally published in 1956 and Reimann lived in East Germany, although she died quite young. So it was a decade after the war ended--enough time to see that the dreams Alexei described, which I'm sure were those of many real people, did not come to fruition. And although the book is short, Katrin's evolution and growth of self awareness were aspects of the book that I quite liked. This is a book that can be read and re-read with new insights appearing each time. I highly recommend it.
Thanks to NetGalley, and the publisher for a digital review copy.
January 25, 2026
A stunning novella that is just as relevant now as it was when first published. A story of love, hope, and survival. One of the most important books ever written,
Thank you to the publisher for the e-copy. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
Thank you to the publisher for the e-copy. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
March 16, 2026
Although it contains with a few tropes and is a little on the nose, I really enjoyed this story. It doesn’t leave an incredible amount to the imagination but explores themes well and the pacing suits the novel.
It’s not going to change your world but I’m happy I read it!
It’s not going to change your world but I’m happy I read it!
March 24, 2025
Simple and hopeful.
Well written and vivid characters.
Well written and vivid characters.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
January 3, 2026
4.5 Wow. Extremely powerful and haunting novella from a domestic German perspective during WW2. Lucid haunting description and a simple tragic inevitability. I’ll be pushing this on everyone I know.
January 10, 2026
A nice little book but also slightly predictable and a lack of depth
February 27, 2026
Predictable but so grounded in realism that I don’t mind the (soviet) clichés too much
September 4, 2025
’It’s never too late to change. We have so much to make up for.’
Thank you NetGalley and Penguin Modern Classics for the opportunity to read the ARC of this novella!
I am highly impressed by how condensed this story is; from the political ideology affecting the common folk, the warfare and its damages (both physical and mental), to the complex feelings and personalities of all characters. The omniscient narrative perspective also aids the reader in understanding all characters, all circumstances, and that during those times, there is no black and white, but only shades of grey.
The plot is relatively predictable to anyone who knows history but, at the same time, it’s also what keeps you on edge, as it offers a sort of dreading thrill — the haunting question of what will happen, in the end, to Kathrin and Alexei?
There are four main characters. Firstly, Kathrin, a young woman who got married only because her father and family wanted to get rid of her. Her married life isn’t rosy in any way whatsoever, but her husband never mistreated her, so that kept her going. She was listless and hopeless, and lacking of any desire to live until she met Alexei, whose mere presence had been a very good influence of Kathrin. Her character development throughout the novella has been absolutely great and I have enjoyed having this journey with her.
Alexei, a prisoner of war, finds himself forced to labour on a farm. He is a tormented creature, haunted by the war, and truly believes in Russia and its purpose, his comrades and the beauty of peace of the future. Through his character, the Soviet side is heavily romanticised, which honestly is to be expected as this was first published in 1956 in East Germany. However, it left me a slight bitter feeling, this complete erasure of the atrocities of the Soviet Army.
Frieda, sister in law to Kathrin, acting like the typical villainous spinster; she has her own dramatic fate, however, instead of growing out of it, she indulges in it and ultimately triggers the collapse of everyone’s relatively peaceful lives. I will say though, without spoiling, that it was very satisfying to see that every action of hers had its consequences.
I oddly found Heinrich the most complex character. Kathrin’s husband, gone to war; he was much more profound than I expected, and while he is a man full of contradictions (making the reader both dislike his faults and appreciate his qualities at the same time), his portrayal as a Nazi soldier is well done. Just when you expect him to be the stereotypical horrible husband, his psyche unravels such raw and humane sentiments which take the reader by surprise.
The translation is well done, and reflected the beauty of the original prose, flawlessly transmitting the bittersweetness of the love story and other elements.
Thank you NetGalley and Penguin Modern Classics for the opportunity to read the ARC of this novella!
I am highly impressed by how condensed this story is; from the political ideology affecting the common folk, the warfare and its damages (both physical and mental), to the complex feelings and personalities of all characters. The omniscient narrative perspective also aids the reader in understanding all characters, all circumstances, and that during those times, there is no black and white, but only shades of grey.
The plot is relatively predictable to anyone who knows history but, at the same time, it’s also what keeps you on edge, as it offers a sort of dreading thrill — the haunting question of what will happen, in the end, to Kathrin and Alexei?
There are four main characters. Firstly, Kathrin, a young woman who got married only because her father and family wanted to get rid of her. Her married life isn’t rosy in any way whatsoever, but her husband never mistreated her, so that kept her going. She was listless and hopeless, and lacking of any desire to live until she met Alexei, whose mere presence had been a very good influence of Kathrin. Her character development throughout the novella has been absolutely great and I have enjoyed having this journey with her.
Alexei, a prisoner of war, finds himself forced to labour on a farm. He is a tormented creature, haunted by the war, and truly believes in Russia and its purpose, his comrades and the beauty of peace of the future. Through his character, the Soviet side is heavily romanticised, which honestly is to be expected as this was first published in 1956 in East Germany. However, it left me a slight bitter feeling, this complete erasure of the atrocities of the Soviet Army.
Frieda, sister in law to Kathrin, acting like the typical villainous spinster; she has her own dramatic fate, however, instead of growing out of it, she indulges in it and ultimately triggers the collapse of everyone’s relatively peaceful lives. I will say though, without spoiling, that it was very satisfying to see that every action of hers had its consequences.
I oddly found Heinrich the most complex character. Kathrin’s husband, gone to war; he was much more profound than I expected, and while he is a man full of contradictions (making the reader both dislike his faults and appreciate his qualities at the same time), his portrayal as a Nazi soldier is well done. Just when you expect him to be the stereotypical horrible husband, his psyche unravels such raw and humane sentiments which take the reader by surprise.
The translation is well done, and reflected the beauty of the original prose, flawlessly transmitting the bittersweetness of the love story and other elements.
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