At long last a new, readable history of German literature. Each epochof German literature is treated against its historical and sociologicalbackdrop by experts in the literature of that period. Vivian'sConcise History of German Literature to 1900 provides amuch-needed reference work that is clear, incisive, and based on themost recent research here and abroad. It is written in a way intendedto appeal to the general reader, the student (both graduate andundergraduate), and to the German major. Even specialists in Germanliterature will find tidbits of information, connections, and judgmentsthat place aspects of German literary history in a new, informativelight.