Who was Heinrich Böll? - in Plain Language

Heinrich Böll was a writer.
That means:
He wrote many books.
For example, about the war years in Germany.
Some books have even been made into movies.

Heinrich Böll was born in Cologne in 1917.
That was a very bad year..
Because there was a war in Germany.
And people had very little to eat.

Heinrich Böll had a very big family.
He had many brothers and sisters.
His father was a master carpenter and sculptor.
For instance
He made images out of wood.
And he made sculptures out of wood.

Heinrich Böll went to school in Cologne.
He graduated from high school there in 1937.
This is a special school leaving certificate.
This enabled him to study at a university.

To study means: A person studies at a university.
A university is a school for adults.
They can learn different professions there. For example:
doctor, teacher, or lawyer.
A lawyer knows a lot about the law.

But Heinrich Böll didn't learn at a university.
He started an apprenticeship in a bookshop.
He couldn't finish the apprenticeship.
Because in 1938 he had to join the Reichs-Arbeits-Dienst.

Reichs-Arbeits-Dienst means:
There had been a law since 1935.
In this law it was written
that every young person had to work 6 months long
for the Deutsche Reich (German Empire).
For instance:
Helping with road construction
or to work on a farm.

Before the Second World War, the name of Germany was
Deutsches Reich.

When he had finished the Reichs-Arbeits-Dienst in 1939
Heinrich Böll went to university after all.
Das war in der Stadt Köln.
Dort hat er die deutsche Sprache studiert.

But Heinrich Böll could only study for a few months.
Then he had to go to war.
He had to fight for the Deutsche Reich.

In his home vacation he married Annemarie Czech.
That was in 1943.
Annemarie Czech was a teacher.

During the war, soldiers got home vacation.
That means:
They could go home and see their families.

After the wedding, Heinrich Böll had to go back to war.
In 1945 he was taken prisoner of war.

That means
He was taken prisoner by American soldiers.
They took him to a prison camp.

After the war Heinrich Böll returned to Cologne.
And he continued his studies at university.
But he also had to work.
Because he had a family with 4 children.

Heinrich Böll started to write stories.
In 1949, his first book was published.

That means:
Many people could read the book.
The title of the book was: Der Zug war pünktlich.
In English it is: The Train Was on Time

In this book Heinrich Böll
wrote about a soldier in war.
After his home vacation,
this soldier had to go back to war.
He traveled by train.
On the way, he had the feeling
that he would soon die in war.

Many of Heinrich Böll's stories
are about people at war.
The people could not forget the war.
Because they had lost their families.
Or they have been seriously injured.

But Heinrich Böll did not just write stories.
He also expressed his opinion on politics. 
Many people didn't always like that. 
Some people insulted him for it. 
Others praised him for it. 
Thus, there have always been many different opinions 
about Heinrich Böll.

Politics means, for example:
New laws are made in a country.
So that everyone can live together well.
Treaties are made with other countries.
So that there is no war.
And important people talk to each other.
So that more can be done for the environment.

In 1970, Heinrich Böll became president of P.E.N.
That means: He was the head of P.EN. 
P.E.N is an association. 
Many writers are members of the association. 
Together, they advocate for many causes. 
For example, for writers from other countries 
who are punished for expressing their opinions 
on politics in their country.

As president of P.E.N. Heinrich Böll
talked to many people.
Heinrich Böll got many awards.
His work was very important.
And many people liked his work.

In 1972 Heinrich Böll was awarded
the Nobel Prize for Literature.
The Nobel Prize is awarded to people
who have done something special for all people.

For instance:

• They have written special books.
  Then they get the Nobel Prize for Literature.
• They have discovered a special medicine that will help many people recover.
  Then they get the Nobel Prize for Medicine.
• Or they have worked for peace in the world.
  Then they get the Nobel Peace Prize.

The Nobel Prize is named after the inventor Alfred Nobel.
He lived in a country named Sweden.

Heinrich Böll wasn't always easygoing. 
That means: 
He spoke his mind. 
Even when many people disagreed. 
For example, he wrote about terrorism in Germany.

In the 1970s, there was a group in Germany: 
The group was called the RAF. 
That's the abbreviation for Red Army Faction. 
The RAF injured many people in Germany. 
And it killed many important people. 
The RAF was a terrorist group.

Heinrich Böll and other writers in Germany 
have expressed their opinion on this:
What politicians did wrong in the fight against terrorism.
And that the newspapers influenced the people in Germany.
That means:
The newspapers wrote many false things about the RAF.
And people believed these things.

It was therefore said of Heinrich Böll 
that he was a friend of terrorism.
But Heinrich Böll did not approve of terrorism.
He was always against violence.

Heinrich Böll also helped other writers.

For instance: Alexander Solschenizyn.
It is pronounced like this: Alexander Sol sche ni zien.
He was a writer from the country: Soviet Union.
This is pronounced: Sov yet un ion.

Solschenizyn did not agree
with the politics in the Soviet Union.
And this was what he wrote about.
That's why he had to leave the Soviet Union.

At the end of the 1970s, 
there was a peace movement in Germany.
That means:
Many young people in Germany were committed to peace.
They wanted: 
That there would be no more war anywhere in the world.

Heinrich Böll participated in the peace movement. 
He gave a speech at a major event. 
And he spoke with many important people about peace.

Heinrich Böll was a great writer. 
He was a person who had a lot to say to other people. 
And who stood up for many things.

Heinrich Böll died in 1985 in the small town of Langenbroich.

The Heinrich Böll Foundation
takes its name from the author.
The Heinrich Böll Foundation also aims to:

• that people live in peace.
• that people can express their opinions.
• that people have a say.

Here you will read more about who we are.

This text in Plain Language was written by the Plain Language Office named:
leicht ist klar. 
Leicht und klar is German and means: Plain and clear.

These experts for Plain Language have checked the texts:
Nina Rademacher and the group of Plain Language readers
from the Kassel workshop.

It is a translation of the German Plain Language version into English.