Benedict Wells

The End of Loneliness

Three siblings lose their parents early and spend a lifetime finding their way back to one another.

💡 Did you know? The novel won the European Union Prize for Literature.

Hard Land

A shy boy lives through a summer of firsts in 1985.

💡 Did you know? Wells loves American cinema and coming-of-age stories: it shapes his tone.

from a John Irving novel

Wells chose the name out of admiration for „The Cider House Rules“.

💡 Did you know? He adopted the pen name as a young man.

Ferdinand von Schirach

Wells’s real name is Benedict von Schirach; he adopted the pen name.

💡 Did you know? He wanted to be seen independently of the famous family.

Becks letzter Sommer

A burnt-out teacher sets off on one last journey.

💡 Did you know? The novel was later filmed with Christian Ulmen.

Fast genial

A boy learns he came from a secret genius experiment.

💡 Did you know? Again Wells shows his love of the American road-trip narrative.

his early success

Instead of studying, after school he moved to Berlin and wrote.

💡 Did you know? Years of odd jobs preceded his breakthrough.

Loneliness, loss and family

Again and again he tells how people carry on after early ruptures.

💡 Did you know? This quiet melancholy made „The End of Loneliness“ a phenomenon.

Benedict Wells