In an interview to the news agency dpa told Follett (65), why intelligence agencies were useless, but nevertheless are important, why he is disappointed with Russia and impressed by Germany, and why 1989 is better than 1961 and 2014 better than 1989
Question:., you have just finished your century trilogy. Three books with a total of 3300 pages are in seven years behind you. Do you have a family now lost or load
Answer: Oh, I’m just glad it worked so well. I was not one hundred percent sure. I even had a plan B that I inform the public that it does not work and I just paid back my advance. Now I am very glad that I took the risk on me. Because the response of readers is quite wonderful
Question:. As an author you have your little universe in which you can decide who is lucky and who, who gets a meconium and who dies. Enjoy it as a little god to play
Answer: Of course, of course! And it is much easier to control than the real world
. Question: In your book, one of the protagonists says that the West had not contributed to the fall of the Berlin Wall and the collapse of communism. Do you really believe the
Answer: Yes, I am convinced. This dialogue is conducted between two CIA agents. And they have failed all along the line. They did not want that Vietnam is communist, and they have failed. They did not want that Cuba is communist, and they have failed. In Nicaragua also. The United States and the Soviet Union have realized many wars as a battle between communism and capitalism. But they were both wrong. Often there were just anti-colonial wars. The people wanted to simply decide in their own country itself. This has grasped neither Washington nor Moscow. The Communists have also given as liberators. They were the exact opposite
. Question: Then hold intelligence in general superfluous
Answer: No, absolutely not. The current task of the intelligence services in the UK, Germany and the United States, extremist dangers, of course, be seen in the first line of Islamists, and combat. I think this is an extremely important work. We are all at risk from such people, our families, our children could be killed. Since intelligence work is very important
Question:., But the services not go too far when they monitor hundreds of millions of people
Answer: Yes, absolutely. Therefore, it is important to monitor these monitoring services themselves. And above all there must be sanctions. Who abuses his power, must be punished, clearly. This happens to me too little. Cops hate to get set limits. But a government must now time to find the balance between the need to ward off dangers, and the need to defend freedom. If necessary against their own police. Police officers do not understand the often. But they also do not have as long as it understand the governments
. Question: In your books will be clear how much you detest even communism. Yet the Kremlin leadership in your book is very differentiated, very close to the people. The conservative governments of Nixon and Reagan on the other hand appear as a gray block of old men. You are really a linker, or
Answer: (laughs) Yes, I am without question. But I must confess that my view of Nixon has changed. In the 70s, I hated him. Now I did some research with one of his employees and now I have to admit that he was very good at some things. He has the Vietnam War ended, eliminating racial segregation in schools and established the Environmental Protection Agency. But it was not easy to give it human features. He was such a liar
Question: You are very kind to your German characters. There are plenty of what you could accuse the Germans in the 20th century. Have you therefore already have to listen to criticism
Answer: Never! You know, the people who fought in World War II, today are very old, most probably already dead. When I was a little boy, some said, the only good German is a dead German. And so terrible that sounds, I understand it to anyone who has fought in the war. But I was born in 1949. You know, 1000 years ago, the Danes have repeatedly attacked our country, our women raped and stole our goods. Nevertheless, we do not hate the Danes today …
Q: … that the British Navy has established 200 years ago in Copenhagen rubble. Perhaps you are simply quits
Answer: (laughs) Yeah, maybe. But seriously. The French have hated for centuries the British. British historians speak of the “British Invasion”. In reality it was a horde of robbers who sailed across the channel and has taken everything they could haul. And there was rape and murder. The French have spoken of the “English plague”. Yes, of course, some French like the British still do not. But anyway that’s all past history. This has nothing to do with nationalities but with circumstances
. Question: But in your books, the people are always very often simplistically. The good ones are very good, even see good, and the evil are evil and to itself outwardly unattractive in every way. I thought that it is only in children’s films from Disney
A:. Because I have to think yourself. I had no good-looking villain? Cameron Dewar, for example, is clearly one of the evil variety …
Question: … and he is tall and lanky and has no chance with the women …
Answer: Yes, that too is right again. But I definitely had already good-looking villains. But let’s be honest: Our enemies we have all, not all in our eyes ugly
Question: May you bad guys
Answer: As an author? I love her! There are in my book “The Pillars of the Earth” a villain named William Hamleigh. It is really disgusting in every way. In no character I will be more than addressed to him. And people say why I did not kill him much earlier? But if you have a really good villain, but then you do not kill him to middle of the book! One would need until the end
Question:., This book begins the “Children of Freedom” in 1961 in the United States are black third-class citizens in the Soviet Union there is communism and in Berlin stands a wall. The book ends in 1989 and apparently all three problems are solved. Clearly ’89 was better than ’61. But is 2014 better than 1989
Answer: I think so. The human race has made progress. There are always setbacks. But black people are now more respected in the world than in 1989, the situation for women has improved and even quite dramatically for homosexuals. The big disappointment is Russia. Here we thought that a country was freed from tyranny. That was a mistake. But it just takes time to develop democracy. A successful election is not enough
. Question: You are one of the most successful writers in the world and sell millions of books. Nevertheless, she takes the feuilleton not entirely serious. No, not really offend the
answer. For one, I am so rewarded, that it would be very ungrateful if I would still complain. I have all these wonderful letters from readers who like my work. And of course, I earn a lot of money, first class can fly and sleep in nice hotels.
Secondly, I was even a journalist and understand it. They want something new. You want the 25-year-olds to write a radically new novel. The small theater group experimenting and creating something entirely new. I am writing in the Victorian tradition, like most in the bestseller lists. These are books with a story with a beginning, a middle and an end, and it works quite magnificent. No one can tell you looks at what makes Follett because he changed the face of literature. He does not, because Follett writes, is written as 200-years
. Question: The last question to be: What are you working
Answer: I research just a matter of the 16th century. Against Queen Elizabeth I of England there were several assassination plans. Therefore, she founded the first secret of modern history. He was very successful, because no conspiracy succeeded. So I’m working on a spy novel from the 16th century. The action takes place again in Kingsbridge, the city of “The Pillars of the Earth” and “World Without End”. I’m working on now for eight months and I am optimistic that he will appear in 2017. A title I have not, nor is it simply “King Bridge III”
PERSONAL:. Ken Follett was born in 1949 in Wales but grew up in London, is considered one of the most successful writers of our time. His breakthrough came in 1989 with “The Pillars of the Earth”, a historical novel from the Middle Ages. Thrillers and historical novels have since become his specialty. While critics complain that Follett sticking to a recipe once and found his books were predictable. But his followers will appreciate its clear language and detailed account of historical events. Follett is married to the former Labour minister Barbara Follett
– Ken Follett, children of freedom, Bastion Luebbe, 1216 pages EUR, 29.99, ISBN:. 978-3-7857-2510-8, appear on September 16.
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