Heinrich Böll

Acclaimed entertainer Hans Schnier collapses when his beloved Marie leaves him because he won’t marry her within the Catholic Church. The desertion triggers a searing re-examination of his life — the loss of his sister during the war, the demands of his millionaire father, and the hypocrisies of his mother, who first …

The Safety Net is a 1979 novel by Heinrich Böll. An English translation by Leila Vennewitz was published in 1981.