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Campbell Jefferys
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The Bicycle Teacher Kindle Edition

by Campbell Jefferys (Author) Format: Kindle Edition
4.4 out of 5 stars 191 ratings
In the summer of 1981, Michael from Perth meets Kathrin from Berlin. It's love. It's East meets West, and East wins.
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  1. Print length
    282 pages
  2. Language
    English
  3. Accessibility
    Learn more
  4. Publication date
    26 Nov. 2013
  5. File size
    2.8 MB
  6. Page Flip
    Enabled
  7. Word Wise
    Enabled
  8. Enhanced typesetting
    Enabled
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Product description

Review

Campbell Jefferys' travel writing is of the non executive variety and so is his book, capturing a GDR that was stronger on the politics of equality than the privilege of aesthetics. The novel opens a cupboard of no-frills narrative skill that is deliberately bare, furnishing it with a view of East. --Eve Lucas, Ex-Berliner Magazine

About the Author

Campbell Jefferys is the author of True Blue Tucker, Hunter and The Bicycle Teacher. Awards he has received include the 2009 Indie Book Awards and the 2012 IPPYs.

Product details

  • ASIN ‏ : ‎ B00GY5WI0A
  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Rippple Books
  • Accessibility ‏ : ‎ Learn more
  • Publication date ‏ : ‎ 26 Nov. 2013
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • File size ‏ : ‎ 2.8 MB
  • Screen Reader ‏ : ‎ Supported
  • Enhanced typesetting ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • X-Ray ‏ : ‎ Not Enabled
  • Word Wise ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Print length ‏ : ‎ 282 pages
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-3981624915
  • Page Flip ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Customer reviews:
    4.4 out of 5 stars 191 ratings

About the author

Follow authors to get new release updates, plus improved recommendations.
Campbell Jefferys

Campbell Jefferys

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Campbell Jefferys is from a small town in Western Australia. His second book, 'Hunter', won the fiction category of the 2009 Indie Book Awards. He is also the author of 'The Bicycle Teacher' (2005), 'True Blue Tucker' (2011) which won in the Australia/New Zealand fiction category of the IPPYs, the 2012 Independent Publisher Book Awards, 'Rowan and Eris' (2018), 'Balaclava' (2023) and the non-fiction travel collection 'Greetings from'. His travel writing can be found at https://threewordtravel.wordpress.com/.

Customer reviews

4.4 out of 5 stars
191 global ratings

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Top reviews from United Kingdom

  • Amazon Customer
    5.0 out of 5 stars Great book
    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 22 November 2016
    Verified Purchase
    Excellent story and a very insightful book with deep characters. I will be looking to read more from this author!
    One person found this helpful
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  • P. Ronayne
    4.0 out of 5 stars A Different Germany
    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 3 November 2015
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    A look at the final few years of the GDR from an outsider's point of view. Michael Smith is an Australian who befriends and loves an East German girl (Kathrin) on a trip to Europe. Back in Australia he decides he wants to go and live in East Germany, the attractions are not just the girl but the less materialistic way of life in the East.

    The way is smoothed by an overhelpful Stasi man who will want the favour returned. Perhaps to everyone's surprise Michael takes to life behind The Wall like an Aussie to Fosters Lager. He quickly becomes a model citizen and is genuinely liked by his new family and friends, including his Stasi handler who can find little to hold over him for information.

    The fact that Michael is serious about his new life, rejecting western values and embracing the socialist ideal is the key theme of the book. As we approach the end of European Communism and the collapse of The Wall Michael stays firmly in the East with his ideals. Even when he views his former Stasi file he never rejects the system but simply sees people for what they are, usually duplicitious.

    A different book of two Germanys. The plot is somewhat thin and at times a little far fetched yet the characters, especially the Germans are excellent. There is a whiff of believability about this novel and I found it enjoyable.
    3 people found this helpful
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  • tracy gallagher
    5.0 out of 5 stars Five Stars
    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 24 January 2015
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    excellent
    One person found this helpful
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  • J. Domin
    4.0 out of 5 stars A fascinating insight into life in East Germany
    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 25 July 2019
    Verified Purchase
    I found this extremely interesting, as I could compare it with my experience in Czechoslovakia in the same period. It was surprising that the Ossies thought they were the best off in the Eastern Bloc. It was, of course, the Czechoslovaks! The atmosphere there was much better, although the same drawbacks existed in both countries.
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  • JammieB22
    5.0 out of 5 stars A really good read.
    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 12 September 2018
    I really enjoyed this book as it brought a view of living in East Germany which was totally new to me. Yes, I know about the building of the wall, the many dangerous and tragic attempts to escape and then the outcomes when the wall came down. What I didn’t have was any insight into the everyday lives of people living in the East. I found the Australian unbelievably naive but still enjoyed following his story. The end was not a surprise. I will definitely explore other books by this author.
    One person found this helpful
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  • Bookworm
    3.0 out of 5 stars Interesting read
    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 2 September 2018
    An idealistic Australian thinks that communism is fairer than the capitalist society in which he lives. He is lazy at school, envious of success in a country where hard work reaps rewards. He falls in love with an east German girl and moves there convinced that it is a fairer society, The east germans are lazy, spy on each other , deal in black market goods, despise artist, gay people and achievers and long to escape their dreary lives but is deluded by this dream. He dosen't realise that there is no equality and the top committee members take what they want.I can only imagine that if Corbin is ever elected we will live these dull and miserable lives too. I don't know what the author believes but it makes you think
    3 people found this helpful
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  • william beeby
    5.0 out of 5 stars This was an excellent read.
    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 20 December 2015
    I give this book five stars because it kept my interest from beginning to end and I really liked the style of writing .
    One person found this helpful
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  • TheHawk
    4.0 out of 5 stars The sad demise of a fairer society
    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 25 June 2018
    This book takes you back to the reality of what life what like in East Germany. I should know as I lived there. It wasn't all bad. The sense of community was strong and people did genuinely care for each other in a way that I've not experienced anywhere else. And this is what the main character, Michael, finds in this book: he is drawn by the attractions of community and socialism but eventually realises that all is not perfect. The book covers the period of German history up to reunification from a personal perspective.

    Would have been five stars but a very slow start almost put me off completely.
    One person found this helpful
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Top reviews from other countries

  • Marina
    5.0 out of 5 stars A true story
    Reviewed in the United States on 20 March 2024
    Verified Purchase
    It was like reading about my own life. Although the main character came from capitalistic Australia to socialistic Germany, and I was born in socialistic Soviet Union and later on emigrated into capitalistic United States, there are many parallels during the time of socialism and after the end of it. I can totally relate to the story. I learned that life in Soviet Union was not so different from the life in the East Germany, while I always thought that because East Germany joined Soviet block after the War, Germans had it a bit better that we had. Oh, well... we lived in the best countries in the World until we learned it wasn't true.
    Thanks for writing this book. I truly like it.
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  • Joann R. Greene
    4.0 out of 5 stars Life in East Germany
    Reviewed in the United States on 1 August 2016
    Verified Purchase
    The Bicycle Teacher is the story of a young Australian, Michael Smith, who moves to East Germany in 1981 as a guest worker. He marries an East German girl and they make their life in East Germany. His life there was fulfilling and satisfying for him. He rose from a mechanic to an English teacher under their system. He loved his life in the GDR and thought communism was a perfect solution for his future. The fall of the Berlin Wall brought his happiness to a crashing halt. He hated West Berlin and what he thought it stood for. He misses the way life was in East Germany and becomes disappointed after the reunification of Germany. He decides then to move his family back to Australia. This was an educational book on life in East Germany but from what I've read, he had it pretty nice compared to others who struggled. A lot of errors in the Kindle edition but still a good read.
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  • ddk
    5.0 out of 5 stars Nice Read
    Reviewed in the United States on 22 February 2018
    Verified Purchase
    Nicely written with valuable insights into another society. The only negative was hundreds of nagging Kindle-version errors, which we were compelled to correct using Calibre before we finished the book.

    My wife was born and raised in the GDR and we married in that country before she was allowed to emigrate to the USA. Therefore, we have first hand experience with the Stasi and their iron grip on the society.

    The author’s positive GDR prospective is valid. Many citizens had a very good life there, were able to nicely cope with a belief system that was inconsistent, idealistic and, at the end, could never survive in the modern world. While having a gnawing desire to see the world beyond the border, most GDR citizens avoided Stasi scrutiny by demonstrating obedience to the communist doctrine.

    The Bicycle Teacher’s origin from a backward Australian society provides a good rationale for his high comfort level toward a communist society. Michael's gushing enthusiasm of a communist society seems a bit of a blind, simplistic stretch. However, even though my high-tech USA background led to what I believe a more realistic view of a controlling, backward, non-competitive GDR environment, the author’s perspective is believable.

    I would have liked to read more about his family’s ability to fit into the Perth environment.
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  • MNY
    4.0 out of 5 stars Good representation of life in the GDR
    Reviewed in the United States on 5 May 2018
    Verified Purchase
    Good representation of life in the GDR, though the Stasi could be much more ruthless than depicted. The book does show that, for a very brief time, there was a movement for building democratic socialism in the GDR after the Wall fell - something most have forgotten - and how it was simply overwhelmed by the seduction of more consumer goods and the general wealth of the West. It gave way almost immediately to "Ostalgie" - a nostalgia for the aspects of East German society that were good that persists to this day among many. The ending is a bit longwinded, but I recommend The Bicycle Teacher for anyone interested in this period in German history.
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  • Thomas E. Bloom
    5.0 out of 5 stars Well Worth Reading
    Reviewed in the United States on 10 August 2016
    Verified Purchase
    This is a very good book. I had never thought that there could be any merit to communism. Now I think there might be just a bit. The history portrayed is accurate. Best concept: Why steal from people who have exactly the same stuff as you have? It's also a very good story. If the author made the whole thing up, he is truly a great writer.

    I've visited and biked through Berlin and can confirm lots of the text.
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