"Some authors have strongly criticized attempts to rebuild a German literary culture in the aftermath of World War II, while others have actively committed themselves to "dealing with the German past." Some Austrian and Swiss writers have found certain contradictions of contemporary life troubling, while others have found these contradictions as humorous or even worth celebrating. German postwar literature has, in the minds of some observers, developed a kind of split personality. In view of the traumatic monstrosities of the previous century, this development might seem logical." "Historical Dictionary of Postwar German Literature is devoted to modern literature produced in the German language - whether from Germany, Austria, or Switzerland - or from writers using German in other countries. This volume covers an extensive period of time, beginning in 1945 at what was called "zero hour" for German literature and proceeding into the 21st century. This is done through a list of acronyms and abbreviations, a chronology, an introductory essay, a bibliography, and hundreds of cross-referenced dictionary entries em writers, such as Nobel Prize-winners Heinrich Boll, Gunter Grass, Elias Canetti, Elfriede Jelinek, and W.G. Sebald. There are also entries on individual works, genres, movements, literary styles, and forms."--Jacket.