Today Norman Kingsley Mailer, novelist, journalist, playwright, screenwriter and film director, died. He was my very first literary discovery when at the age of 3 or 4 years, I found this big book in the drawer of my father's desk: The Naked and the Dead.

Since I wasn't able to read at that time, I urged my mother to read at least one page to me each evening instead of singing a lullaby or telling a fairy tale. I don't know how long she or I kept up with this, but I still remember this very first voyage into literature and tales from the war very well. I kept this love for American writers and I guess I've read more of their books than from German ones. Thank you, Norman.