Die Furgge

by Katharina Zimmermann

Rare Book

255 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1989

Reviews

[Joy · Rating 5 out of 5]

A phenomenal book. Historical fiction about the persecution of Anabaptists in Switzerland from ~1650-1700s. This is set in the exact region that my dad’s family lineage stems from, and where we had travelled together in 2015. I was absolutely awash in feelings as I read this — feelings related to identity and heritage. I had never before read or known of a personalized account of my tribe’s experience in Switzerland during that era.

The book’s writing and the translating are not really all that solid, but the *story*...! The story! Anyone of Swiss Anabaptist heritage who has not read this should drop what they’re doing and read this.

This book also marks the first time I’ve ever understood why historical fiction should be permitted to exist. It is perfect for stories like these, for which we simply will never be able to recreate or know so many specific facts from that time.

I read this in January 2018, in preparation for travels to Switzerland in June 2018. I read the 2017 English edition of the book, which Goodreads doesn’t seem to know to exist, at the time of this writing.

[James P · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good expose about the early Anabaptists from a more sociological and family perspective. A bit difficult to follow at times but the author wraps it up nicely.