The exhibition draws primarily on materials from the Hans Fallada Archive and the Hans Fallada Museum and traces the novel's creation and early promotion.
At the end of June 1932, Rowohlt Verlag published Hans Fallada’s novel *Kleiner Mann – was nun?*, which quickly became a national and international success. Thanks to the substantial revenue, not only was Hans Fallada able to fulfill his dream of owning a farm, but the financially struggling publishing house was also able to get back on its feet.
June 2027 marks the 95th anniversary of the novel’s publication: reason enough for the Hans Fallada Museum to honor this milestone with its annual exhibition. The exhibition focuses primarily on documents that shed light on the efforts of Rowohlt Publishing and the author to successfully position the novel through clever and tailored advertising. The exhibition focuses on the primary sources—letters, advertisements, reviews, etc.—so that the explanatory texts are kept as brief as possible.
This exhibition features several items from the Hans Fallada Museum’s collection. However, most of the documents come from the Hans Fallada Archive at the Neubrandenburg Literature Center. This includes letters written by Hans Fallada or addressed to him. The author always typed his letters and made a carbon copy for his own records, which was filed without a signature. This explains why the Fallada letters shown here are unsigned.
The exhibition is complemented by numerous German-language and international editions of the novel. This selection alone—featuring new editions right up to the present—shows that his success continues to this day.
