Books like The Tunnel by William H. Gass

In The Tunnel, William Frederick Kohler, a distinguished professor in his fifties and specialist of Nazi Germany, has finished his comprehensive study *Guilt and Innocence in Hitler's Germany* and must write an introductory preface. Unable to summon the expected scholarly tone, Kohler instead records a fragmented, highly personal history that contradicts his previous objective analysis. The narrative is disordered, filled with omissions, repetitions, and falsehoods, and becomes an intensely autobiographical account. As he writes, Kohler secretly excavates a literal tunnel beneath his basement, a physical act that parallels his psychological exploration of memory, love, hate, and the secret layers of the self. The interplay of text and tunneling creates a profound meditation on the darker aspects of the human heart and the ways personal history intersects with broader historical narrative.

First publish date: 1995