Zoo Station: The Story of Christiane F. (Wir Kinder vom Bahnhof Zoo) | Lina
In 1978 Christiane F. testified against a man who had traded heroin for sex with teenage girls at Berlin's notorious Zoo Station. In the course of that trial, Christiane F. became connected with two journalists—Kai Hermann and Horst Rieck. From those discussions and conversations became the book "We children from Bahnhof Zoo", true story of a girl who becomes a heroin addict at the age of fourteen. Christiane F.'s rapid descent into heroin abuse and prostitution is shocking, but the boredom, the longing for acceptance, the thrilling risks, and even the musical obsessions that fill out the rest of Christiane's existence will be familiar to every reader. Christiane F.'s Berlin is a strange and often terrifying place, but it's also a place that remains closer than we might think...
Usually I have a bit of an aversion towards non-fiction works, especially the ones based on true stories. Somehow, knowing that the story is true makes it much scarier and in the same time easier to really get into. And besides, I’m not really a fan of biographical or autobiographical works either.
That is exactly the reason why I, despite hearing a lot of positive things about it and one of my friends literally obsessing over how good this book is, was quite reluctant to actually read it. And at first, I thought my suspicions were going to be comfirmed and that this book was really going to be boring, uneventful and altogether bland.
But it actually ended up being a lot more than that. It’s really hard to describe what exactly is it about, besides the obvious drugs and addiction, of course. It is a story of people, society, post-WW2 Germany. Friendships being formed and broken. Love. A girl trying to find her place in the world. There is no big reveal, mind-blowing twists or happily ever after, as there is no such things in real life. But it still keeps you interested, makes you feel for Cristiane and her friends more than you ever could for fictional characters.
I don’t think this is a book everyone would enjoy. I have kind of struggled with it myself, especially at the beginning. But I still think it’s definitely one worth reading, both for younger people and adults. Even if you don’t really like this type of books, it might still end up exceeding your expectations and making an impression on you.
As for me, I went from thinking I’d hate it to actually wanting to watch a movie and maybe even reread it, which I think says a lot. I honestly don’t know why or how I ended up liking it, but here I am, emotionally exhausted, trying to find out what happened to Christiane and Detlef after the events of this book. As I said, it kind of has a way of shocking you.
That is exactly the reason why I, despite hearing a lot of positive things about it and one of my friends literally obsessing over how good this book is, was quite reluctant to actually read it. And at first, I thought my suspicions were going to be comfirmed and that this book was really going to be boring, uneventful and altogether bland.
But it actually ended up being a lot more than that. It’s really hard to describe what exactly is it about, besides the obvious drugs and addiction, of course. It is a story of people, society, post-WW2 Germany. Friendships being formed and broken. Love. A girl trying to find her place in the world. There is no big reveal, mind-blowing twists or happily ever after, as there is no such things in real life. But it still keeps you interested, makes you feel for Cristiane and her friends more than you ever could for fictional characters.
I don’t think this is a book everyone would enjoy. I have kind of struggled with it myself, especially at the beginning. But I still think it’s definitely one worth reading, both for younger people and adults. Even if you don’t really like this type of books, it might still end up exceeding your expectations and making an impression on you.
As for me, I went from thinking I’d hate it to actually wanting to watch a movie and maybe even reread it, which I think says a lot. I honestly don’t know why or how I ended up liking it, but here I am, emotionally exhausted, trying to find out what happened to Christiane and Detlef after the events of this book. As I said, it kind of has a way of shocking you.
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