Robert Seethaler

The Tobacconist

Translated by Charlotte Collins

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Franz, a young Austrian man, moves from the countryside to make a living in 1930s Vienna. He apprentices with a tobacconist, and at the shop, meets and befriends Sigmund Freud. Franz engages in lengthy discussions with Freud, learns to manage the shop, and falls in love. And when the Nazis occupy Vienna, he remains true to his values, making a profound personal sacrifice to resist the inhumanity, antisemitism, and fascism consuming the city.