Peter Franziscus Strassegger

The End of Our Flag

In Rottenhof, brothers Adam and Florian are very much left to themselves in a small community where things aren't quite as they should be. They scout for robbers and jugosers in a barren landscape, and both look forward to and dread the impending war.

Since their mother spends all her time with their little sister and their father is Rottenhof's most important man, it becomes Adam's job to watch over and educate Florian. And Adam is a rather special educator. He shows Florian all the rituals that must be performed so that the robbers don't put them in their bags and take them with them, and concocts gruesome ways to kill the Pröll-child.

Behind this veneer of childlike imagination, we are able to sense a society in ruins and a world constantly on the verge of war. It is also a story about how a small community is forced to react to abuse. And when the war ends and Florian gets sick, Adam's high ideals of bravery and love for the fatherland are broken down in the face of reality.