The book circle

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Logo of the book club “Der Bücherkreis”, designed by Karl Schulpig

The Bücherkreis was a social democratic book club during the Weimar Republic .

history

The Book Club was founded in 1924 with the headquarters in Berlin's Kreuzberg district , Belle-Alliance-Platz  6, in the legal form of a GmbH founded and defined himself with these words:

The Bücherkreis is an association of the working people for the care of the good and valuable book.

Friedrich Wendel headed the book club until 1928 , after which Karl Schröder took over the management until 1932. Wendel and Schröder knew each other from the time they worked together in the Berlin group of the KAPD . The ban on the book club took place in 1933 after the seizure of power by the National Socialist government.

Since 1925, a monthly magazine in octave format with a volume of 16 pages has been published by an editorial office based in Berlin-Kreuzberg, Lindenstrasse 3 . The monthly issue contained graphics with motifs from working life, a colored art sheet, caricatures, literary texts, poems and organizational messages. A total of nine years up to 1933 could appear - the last year only with one issue.

organization

The Bücherkreis was a book club based on cooperative solidarity , which was not run by any profit intention. The company's purpose is stated in its articles of association:

The aim is to work in the interests of the working people by publishing good books in the best equipment for cheap money.

The head office in Berlin served as a main office for the Germany-wide paying agents. They held so-called propaganda evenings for the purpose of recruiting members. Members formed the basis of the distribution of books on favorable terms. In 1927 the monthly fee was 1.00  Reichsmarks including the monthly booklet for 30  pfennigs . For additional orders going beyond the quarterly book, the member paid 3.00 Reichsmarks per book. An entrance fee in the sense of an admission fee was not charged. In the book circle, one book was distributed every quarter, whereby since the first quarter of 1927 the members could choose between two books of equal value.

In addition, the members had the right to choose a book for a further reduced price. But non-members were also given the opportunity to purchase all works at a price of 4.80 marks each. According to the prospectus What is the book circle? from 1930, the book club had distributed over a million volumes in the five years of its existence. (The high total circulation may be one reason why today's prices in the antiquarian bookstore are relatively low. The only exceptions are the following three books: Fritz Wildung on workers' sport from 1931, Alexander Schwab's book on building from 1930, published under the pseudonym Albert Sigrist, and the debit and credit edition by Gustav Freytag , which was no longer officially distributed in 1933 due to the Nazis banning the book circle.)

A striking sign of books circle was and is that of Karl Schulpig designed logo : It shows a standing and reading man who is dressed in black elegance and as a head covering, a melon bears. The man is holding an open book in front of his face. From the perspective of the person, the right part of the book cover is either white, dotted or colored. The figure has a size of 30 mm and it stands in a circle with an inner diameter of 8 mm and an outer diameter of 13 mm. The entire logo has a height of 32.5 mm. However, the bells ring shows the logo with a red circle and a red instead of white book cover . In general, the logo is placed inside a book on the second cover sheet at different locations. Occasionally the logo is on the spine of the book , as is the case, for example, with the edition Love and Marriage in the Lives of the Peoples by Heinrich Cunow.

Currently (July 2009) the question of why the initiators of the social democratic book circle chose a logo that conveys a bourgeois appearance to the viewer has to remain unanswered (July 2009) .

program

The book club's program was oriented towards social democracy, but it was based on the left spectrum of the labor movement . A political orientation that remains recognizable by the authors of the book series and the published titles. The covers of the book series were designed by Lili Rethi, Hans Windisch , Will Faber, Hans Baluschek and Jan Tschichold .

Head of Friedrich Wendel

Karl Schröder : The Jump Over the Shadow (1928)
  • Volume 1: Friedrich Wendel : The 19th century in the caricature . Cover design by Aloys Rieke. 1925.
  • Volume 2: Martin Andersen Nexö : Atonement . Cover design by Hans Windisch. 1925.
  • Volume 3: Paul Zech : The story of a poor Johanna . Cover design by Hans Baluschek . 1925.
  • Volume 4: Raoul Heinrich Francé : The Land of Longing. Journeys of a naturalist in the south . 1925.
  • Volume 5: Maxim Gorki : The son of the nun . From the Russian by August Scholz. 1925.
  • Volume 6: Richard Woldt : The working world of technology . Cover design and picture decoration by Helmut Krommer. 1926.
  • Volume 7: Friedrich Wolf : Creature. Novel of time . Cover design by Will Faber. 1926.
  • Volume 8: Annie Francé-Harrar : Animal and Love. Stories of the oppressed and the misunderstood. Cover design by Hans Windisch. 1926.
  • Volume 9: Alfred Otto Stolze: Angela. Cover design and picture decorations by Max Graeser. 1926.
  • Volume 10: Hermann Horn: The demons and the blue ribbon . Cover design by Will Faber. 1st quarter / 1927.
  • Volume 11: Friedrich Wendel: The bell ringing. Caricatures critical of culture. Cover design by Arthur Wellmann. 1st quarter / 1927.
  • Volume 12: Max Barthel : The Putsch . Cover design by Karl Holtz . II quarter / 1927.
  • Volume 13: Friedrich Max Kircheisen : The Bastille . Cover design by Max Graeser. II quarter / 1927.
  • Volume 14: Heinrich Bruno Grosser: On the dead track. The story of a missed life . Cover design & Title page Will Faber. III./1927.
  • Volume 15: Heinrich Cunow : Technology and economy of European primitive man . III./1927, cover draft, picture decorations and initials: AW Baum.
  • Volume 16: Max Barthel: Man on the Cross. A novel based on the diary of a Catholic pastor. Cover design and inside title Will Faber. IV./1927.
  • Volume 17: Oskar Wöhrle : Baldamus and his pranks . Cover draft and design by Jacobus Belsen. IV./1927 and 1931.
  • Volume 18: Edmond and Jules de Goncourt : The Maid Germinie . Translated from the French by Bernhard Jolles. Cover design by Will Faber. I./1928.
  • Volume 19: Paul Kampffmeyer and Bruno Altmann : Before the Socialist Law . Years of crisis in the authoritarian state . I./1928.
  • Volume 20: Karl Schröder : The jump over the shadow . Cover design by Theodor Schultze-Jasmar. II./1928.
  • Volume 21: Eduard Bernstein : Social Democratic Apprenticeship Years . II./1928.
  • Volume 22: Curt Grottewitz and Wilhelm Bölsche : Man as ruler of nature . Estate edition supplemented by Bölsche. Cover design by F. Peffer. III./1928.
  • Volume 23: Camille Lemonnier: The iron Moloch . Translated from the Flemish by P. Cornelius. Cover design by Will Faber. III./1928.
  • Volume 24: Hermann Müller-Franken : The November Revolution . Memories . Cover design by F. Peffer. IV./1928.
  • Volume 25: Camille Lemonnier: There is a wind through the mills . Translated from the Flemish by P. Cornelius. Cover design by F. Peffer. IV./1928.

Head of Karl Schröder

Love & Marriage in the Lives of Nations by Heinrich Cuno (1929)

When Karl Schröder took over the leadership, the band numbers were dropped. Due to the current source situation (July 2009), it is not yet possible to allocate the books on a quarterly basis within the respective year. The following books appeared until 1933:

  • Heinrich Cunow: Love and Marriage in the Life of Nations . Cover design by F. Peffer. 1929.
  • Jeppe Aakjär: Fermenting forces. Farmworker novel . Authorized transfer from Gerda Haupt-Placzek. Cover design by F. Peffer. 1929.
  • Karl Schröder: The story of Jan Beek . 1929.
  • Anna Karawajewa: The sawmill . Translated from Russian by Alexandra Ramm-Pfemfert . Abridged version of Fabrik im Walde . Cover design by F. Peffer. 1929.
  • Bruno Schönlank: Agnes. A novel from the time of the socialist law . Cover design by F. Peffer. 1929.
  • Max Barthel: Rise of the Gifted . Cover design by F. Peffer. 1929.
  • Max Barthel, Franz Jung, Adam Scharrer and Oskar Wöhrle: The four-man book. Experience novellas . 1929, cover design: F. Peffer .
  • Adrianus Michael de Jong: Treason . ( Mereyntje Geysen's childhood , Volume I, from the Dutch by Friedrich and Maria Grünberg). Cover design by F. Peffer. 1929.
  • Adrianus Michael de Jong: The strange sexton . ( Mereyntje Geysen's childhood , Volume II, from the Dutch by Friedrich and Maria Grünberg). Cover design by F. Peffer. 1929.
  • Adrianus Michael de Jong: Simple-minded children . ( Mereyntje Geysen's childhood , Volume III, from the Dutch by Friedrich and Maria Grünberg). Cover design by F. Peffer. 1930.
  • Adrianus Michael de Jong: In the whirlpool . ( Mereyntje Geysen's childhood , Volume IV, from the Dutch by Friedrich and Maria Grünberg). Cover design by F. Peffer. 1930.
  • Adam Scharrer : Out of style. Worker's travelogue. Cover and typographic design by Jan Tschichold. 1930.
  • Robert Budzinski : Turn around . Cover design by Lili Rethi. 1930.
  • Werner Illing: Utopolis . 1930.
  • Pierre Hamp (that's Henri Bourillon): Flax . 1930.
Albert Sigrist: The Book of Building (1930)
Otto Mannchen-Helfen: Journey to the Asian Tuwa (1931)
  • Erich Herrmann: Before and after. The story of a foundling . 1930.
  • Felix Scherret: The dollar is rising. Inflation novel from an old city . 1930.
  • Albert Sigrist (actually: Alexander Schwab ): The book of building . 1930.
  • Franz Jung : peddler . Socially critical novel. Cover and typography by Jan Tschichold. 1931.
  • Arthur Goldstein (Ed.): The funny book of the book circle. A collection of humoresques and grotesques . Cover and typography by Franz Peffer . With contributions by Erich Kästner , Peter Panter , Roda Roda , P. Scher, Hans Reimann , Oskar Wöhrle , R. Budzinski and others. 1931.
  • Karl Schröder: The Markert family . A study of society (2 volumes). 1931.
  • Dmitrij Tschetwerikow: The Rebellion of the Engineer Karinsky . 1931.
  • Fritz Wildung : Workers' Sport . Cover design by F. Peffer. 1931.
  • Eva Broido: Weather lighting of the revolution . With a foreword by Alexander Stein . Cover design by F. Peffer. 1931.
  • Ramon J. Sender: Iman. Battle for Morocco . Translated from the Spanish by G. H. Neuendorff. Cover design and typography by Jan Tschichold. 1931.
  • Otto Männchen-Helfen : Journey to the Asian Tuva . 1931, cover design and typography: Jan Tschichold.
  • Otto Bernhard Wendler : Laubenkolonie Erdenglück . Typography and binding by Jan Tschichold. 1931.
  • Josef Lenhard: Man under the hammer . Cover design and typography by Jan Tschichold. 1932.
  • Otto Männchen-Helfen: Third of humanity. An East Asia book . Cover and typography by Jan Tschichold. 1932.
  • Berta Selinger: Heart on fire . 1932.
  • Boris Nikolajewski : Asew. The story of a betrayal . Translated from the Russian manuscript by Nina Stein . Cover design and typography by Jan Tschichold. 1932.
  • Erich Grisar : Through Europe with a camera and typewriter . Cover draft, composition and picture arrangement Jan Tschichold. 1932.
  • Helmut Wickel: I.-G. Germany. A state within a state . Cover design and typography by Jan Tschichold. 1932.
  • Oskar Wöhrle: Jan Hus . The last day . 1932.
  • Paul Banks: The patient Albion . Cover and typography by Jan Tschichold. With an afterword by the author. Translation from English by Karl Korn. 1932.
  • Albert Klaus : The starving. An unemployment novel . Cover design and typography by Jan Tschichold. 1932.
  • Arturo Uslar-Pietri: The red lances. Roman from the time of the Latin American liberation . Authorized translation, introduction and epilogue by G. H. Neuendorff. With 22 pictures from tropical America and a map. Cover design and typography by Jan Tschichold. 1932.
  • Nikolai Bogdanow: Village and Commune. Translated from the Russian by Nina Stein. 1933.
  • Semjon Rosenfeld: Russia before the storm . Translated from the Russian by Werner Bergengruen. Typography Jan Tschichold. 1933.
  • Otto Mannchen-Helfen and Boris Nikolajewski: Karl and Jenny Marx . A way of life . 1933. (The penultimate book in the book circle before the takeover of power ).
  • Gustav Freytag : Debit and credit . Cover design by Andreas Nießen. 1933. (The official extradition did not take place.)

literature

  • Urban van Melis: The book clubs in the Weimar Republic. With a case study on the social democratic workers' book community Der Bücherkreis . Hiersemann, Stuttgart 2002. ISBN 3-77720-237-1 . online (PDF; 60 kB)

Web links

See also

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Monthly booklet Der Bücherkreis , No. 4, April 1928, p. 80.
  2. ^ Ossip K. Flechtheim : The KPD in the Weimar Republic. Junius, Hamburg 1986, p. 116.
  3. ↑ a b Quoted from the Bücherkreis prospectus from 1930. Source: Prometheus Antiquariat, Berlin 2009.
  4. ↑ Due to inconsistent spelling, the spelling of the University of Vienna is chosen here.
  5. ↑ Grottewitz (actually a puddle) drowned in Müggelsee in 1905. Source: Antiquariat Frankenland, ZVAB. Last accessed on July 18, 2009.
  6. ↑ Emig-S. G 73 u. Melis 70.1, quoted from Frank Albrecht antiquarian bookshop.