Victor Sebestyen

The GDR was not the Stasiland of grey monotony we imagine

Katja Hoyer evokes the tears and anger – but also the laughter and pride, as citizens raised their children, went on holidays and joked about their politicians

A young boy plays at being a member of the Volkspolizei, the GDR’s police force, East Berlin, 1961. [Getty Images] 
issue 15 April 2023
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  • Beyond the Wall: East Germany 1949-1990

    Katja Hoyer

    Allen Lane, pp. 465, £25

One of the great unsung heroes of modern times is Lt Colonel Harald Jäger, an East German border guard who was the commanding officer at the Bornholmer Strasse checkpoint in central Berlin on that wondrous night of 9 November 1989. 

There are heart-rending stories of those who were shot ‘wall jumping’, the near-impossible method of escape

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