Queer historical German scholarship so far has focused almost exclusively on cis gay men. Through extensive archival research, Queer Lives Across the Wall looks more specifically at lesbian and trans Germans living in post-WWII Berlin from 1945 to 1970. Told in four parts, it explores the queering of various spaces: domestic spaces like the home, social spaces like clubs and bars, liminal spaces like public restrooms, and carceral spaces like prisons, where thousands of queer Germans found themselves during these years.
How a person navigated the world and how they were treated by the system varied wildly based on their gender, sexuality, and class, as well whether they were in the East or West and when, and Rottmann lays out the ways East and West Germany diverged in their treatment of queerness as well as their many, many similarities.
This is a very human book, thanks to the personal nature of its first hand sources which include letters, oral histories, and photographs. Still, it's a touch too academic for me to recommend broadly, but if you've already got an interest in queer and/or German history it's a solid read.
It's not a complete history, of course, by its own admission. Much scholarship remains to be done regarding race and migration status for queer historical Germans, but this text is a massive first step to broaden our understanding.

I think this would work great as a text in a university classroom since it's very academic. It has great research on Queer people on both sides of the Wall in Cold War Germany (post WWII-70s). Usually the nonfiction I read is more informative than academic and I didn't realize going into it that it would feel more like reading a textbook than anything, but it was still interesting and well researched and includes some photographs as well.

Thanks to netgalley for a free copy in exchange for an honest review!

Thank you Andrea Rottmann, University of Toronto Press and NetGalley for allowing me to read this ARC e-book. This book takes a look into the post war life of the LGBTQ community and the struggles they faced while dealing with the after shocks from the war. This is an eye opening view into history most of us have never put much thought into and goes to show that the problem those in the community have been facing for many decades.

Thanks to NetGalley and the University of Toronto Press for a digital ARC - pub date 6/20/2023. Heavily researched, very detailed, meticulous in its structure and presentation. I admit that I expected something less scholarly and more story-based ala interviews and personal diaries so it proved more challenging than I anticipated. This is not a bad thing, though. Rottmann clearly dug through the sparse and varied archives to build her thesis here and to truly sketch out the state of living for queer people in both East and West Berlin from post-WWII until the 70's. Everything was presented in a clear, level voice - just the facts, you know. But there was humanity here, too, and the wealth of information the author found in the hidden places almost overwhelmed.

For a split city with two very different appearance goals, there were a lot more parallells than divergences when it came to how they treated their queer citizens. The author touched on the various spaces open to queer people - the private sector (home), the public sector (bars, clubs, train stations, parks, etc), and the inevitable resulting location of prison when a society insists on criminalizing portions of their population. Rottmann brought an understanding of German history and personality to the table in discussing each section - covering legal aspects, social aspects, personal and everything in between. When was home safe or not safe? When was a favorite bar a sanctuary versus being a dangerous outing? How did Berlin's queer citizens cope with the swinging rules and opinions of those in charge? Even more surprisingly to my expectations, the author proved clearly that West Berlin and East Berlin were, in many ways, running neck and neck in who treated their queer population better or worse. The "better" place to live all depended on how you presented, what year it was, what your job was. Both sides of the Berlin Wall offered happiness and heartache, freedom and restriction. As Rottmann shows, it all depends on the moment and you.

this is a fantastic and accessible walk through berlin during the immediate post WW2 years, with a specific focus on what was happening in queer communities as they rebuilt themselves in the wake of nazi persecution and as they navigated new forms of surveillance by police and emerging technologies. one of the coolest parts of this book was the number of photos rottmann was able to find of the people and places they are describing. rottmann structures their narrative around specific individuals' stories found in the archive, and highlights what survival for people with diverse genders and sexualities might have looked like in a number of spaces, from two mother households formed after men did not come home from the war to engagement ceremonies in prison yards. it can be easy to fall into the trap of writing narratives of temporal progress (?) when describing queer history because in many places the past decade was a time of big changes in mainstream acceptance, but there's nothing linear (...or straight?) about histories of queer visibility. By opening this book with a memory of a trans-inclusive healthcare space in pre-war berlin, rottmann draws attention to the ongoing-ness of queer community building, and the fragility of queer liberation.

How would you keep your relationship alive during a time when not only was being LGBTQIA illegal, but a literal physical wall and military checkpoints that seemingly appeared overnight prohibiting you from seeing your partner? Queer Lives Across the Wall sheds light on this harrowing time for LGBTQIA couples caught in the crossfire of the Berlin Wall and occupation zone. While written in academic prose the author does a wonderful job of following the lives of those affected so their stories may live on through history.



***Thank you Netgalley and University of Toronto Press for an eArc in exchange for my honest review. ***

This is a collection of academic research about LGBTQ+ individuals in Germany during this time period. It was very detailed and had lots of stories and excerpts from various sources. It’s definitely meant for an academic audience, so it’s quite dry. I learned a lot, and I will recommend this to people who want to learn more about queer history or German history, but not to average readers. I learned about a few topics I want to research further on my own, and I especially enjoyed the real photos that were included. The first two chapters were my favorites.

I'll admit, I have a tendency to dip into non-fiction books rather than fully read them in full. Still, this is just a really fascinating look at queer lives in Cold War Germany. It's really well-researched and academic, mentioning quite a few other historians and looking at some really interesting aspects of queer people's lives in the FRG and GDR. The varying social spaces that were used and developed were really interesting. It's something I'll keep dipping into for sure, especially as it's ended up partially inspiring my dissertation topic.

*I received an ARC via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. Thanks for the free book.*

"Queer Lives across the Wall" is a great academic work that sheds light on the lives of queer people in Berlin, both East and West Berlin. Factors that are taken into account are mostly gender and class, but many further questions are being asked.

If you're interested in the real lives of queer people in Berlin, check out this book. I learned so many things and I am German.

5 stars

This was an incredibly well researched book. It had a lot of really awesome information. It is obvious that this book is well researched and filled with awesome information. It is very academically written. It reads as several academic papers combined into a book. So if you don't have an interest in that this isn't the book for you. If you do have an interest you are going to learn so much and love it!

This book was beautifully written props to the author! This book is very important I think it should be taught in history classes. More people should know about the events that take place in this book and the history of the queer community. Thank you to NetGalley for providing me this ARC!

This was written so carefully and lovingly. To know many of these people survived one of the darkest moments in history and have made their stories known is absolutely incredible. This is something I'll be referencing a lot as I learn more about queer history.

This book is wonderfully written and clearly a labor of love. The writing style leans academic without being dry and is thorough without dragging. I enjoyed the letters, interview transcripts, and diaries (have to love a primary source) and I thought the author provided strong in-depth examinations of these accounts. I loved reading such a nuanced book about the experiences of queer Berliners post-WW2.

This was stellar. Wonderfully researched with rich, intimate details that really brought history to life. I also deeply appreciated Rottmann's thinking-through of the limitations of the research, given what made it into archives. As someone who's done some research myself on queer Germany, and is particularly interested in one of the historical figures discussed here, I found I learned context I hadn't known and gained insight from Rottman's analysis. Just a beautifully done and needed book.

This book is an academic exploration of queer lives in Berlin, and an exploration of differences and similarities between East and West Germany and their treatment of queer people. This book covers queer spaces: in the home, queer bars, public spaces, and prisons. By giving stories and first hand accounts of people in each of these locations, this book gives a fairly comprehensive look at queer lives in private and public.

This book is highly academic and well researched; however the stories and accounts from queer people makes it very engaging.

Great overview of a part of history that not many are exploring. Clearly academic work, but done in a way that felt accessible. It's interesting to note the common threads of Queer culture that existed and continue to exist across the globe. This book left me thinking hard about inclusion and affirmation in today's world and the unfair expectations our heteronormative society places on the Queer community to "assimilate" or have Queerness "look straight". This text left me questioning even more about how can society at large learn more from the ways the LGBTQIA+ has survived and thrived in the face of so much opposition.

I really enjoyed the academic style of this book. It felt like reading four papers that had been tied together and well researched. At the same time this is a book that is rich with stories and touches on the lives of a variety of queer people living in post WW2 Berlin. The book examines how queer people of the time found community in their home, bars, public areas, and prisons. The author split this into four parts and examined each of these areas. Records were referenced, often police reports, as well as personal accounts and letters. There were also pictures of and often from the people being explored. This book also illustrates how the construction of the Berlin Wall and being suddenly not allowed to travel from East or West Berlin to the other side affected the lives of queer people. The author explored how this affected social life, bar life, and even the people who lost their lives. I also appreciated that several stories that queer people wrote were touched on and that even the reception of these stories is explored. I also liked that the author took the time to touch on other books that have researched this time period and then ended with pointing out areas of research that she didn’t include in her book that could use further exploration. I felt like I learned a lot about the time period and how queer people lived their lives by reading this.

Thank you to Netgalley for the advanced review copy. I am leaving this review voluntarily.

It is a passionately written and deeply researched book that provides in-depth examination of queer history in post-WWII Berlin. The author‘s passion for the topic shines through in every page and I really appreciated that the book also gives voice to stories and experiences of queer women.

One of the undeniable strengths is its in-depth examination of letters and oral interview transcripts. The author meticulously examines the language used in these documents and provides a nuanced analysis of the meaning behind all the words.

The book adopts academic style, with the author providing lots of explanation of what will be written in the chapter and closing with a conclusion. However this fact does not make the book any less enjoyable to read.

ARC provided by NetGalley. Thank you.

A very interesting read although slightly more academic than I’d imagined. You could however see the amount of time, effort and carefulness that was put into research for this. Truly fascinating to read about queer history in Germany.

I loved this book. I have been looking for more books that are LGBTQ friendly to add to our collection, One of our main goals is to have a more diverse collection.