German lit classics đ„šđ»
this is a list consisting of some German books that are considered classics by the internet (and also me) in their original language. some books may be by Austrian/Swiss authors but they had an impact on German literature. it's a work in progress, so let me know what books Iâm missing đ«Ą
created by lunarnaut
last updated September, 2026
Comments
Not you feeding into the stereotypes and including beer and pretzels in the title đđ
listEN I am Bavarian so đ«Ł
Hahaha oh no that's what I suspected đđ Well at least the list put me on a quest of adding my physical books on here that I've read ages ago.
As a Bavarian myself I donât think weâll ever fully leave the stereotypes behind, but I feel bad thatâs often the only things people think of Germany đ«
Yes exactly, but I mean they exist for a reason đ€·đ»ââïž
tintenherz und die unendliche geschichte đđđđđ
Core childhood memory unlocked! đđ„șđ I also loooved the movie!
What about Siddharta by Herman Hesse and Kabale und Liebe by Schiller?
Oh and maybe Der Wunschpunsch?
Iâm gonna be honest and say Iâve never heard of the books but I do know the authors so đ«Ą Iâll add them in a sec eta: actually I do know der wunschpunsch how could I forget omg
I had to read the first two in school so I thought they might fit the list đ
yeah the books I read in school or performed as a play honestly made it first onto the list!! but I was kind of unlucky with my teachers making me read books that were ⊠not great but also arenât even considered classics so I canât add them đ
I honestly can't remember a single book I really enjoyed in school đ
I just remembered a few more: Mephisto by Klaus Mann, Die verlohrene Ehre der Katharina Blum by Heinrich Böll and Der Vorleser by Bernhard Schlink đ
Not me just scrolling through, seeing this and getting really excited. Be right back, I need to tick a few things off. đđ
I'd also suggest books by Johann Nestroy bc I think they'd fit the criteria? "Der Talisman", "Der böse Geist Lumpazivagabundus", "Einen Jux will er sich machen". Also "Maria Stuart" by Friedrich Schiller? And "Leonce und Lena" by Georg BĂŒchner? "Die Judenbuche" by Annette von Droste-HĂŒlshoff? "Wilhelm Meisters Lehrjahre" and "Die Wahlverwandschaften" by Goethe? "Minna von Barnhelm" by Lessing? And maybe "Schachnovelle" by Stefan Zweig?
Tbh, we read most/all of those in school or as an assignment đ
Maria Stuart is already on the List (because I personally had to read that one too lol) but Iâll add the others later when Iâm home đ«Ą
Oops, I totally forgot I even marked it as read just now. My bad. đŹđ€Šđ»ââ ïž
Yay, nice. đ Thanks. đđ»đ«¶đ»
