Reading for Fun

Although many people like to spend their free time with music, TV, films, and video games, there's nothing like settling down with a good book. This week, let's talk about all there is to read!

In German, a work of non-fiction is called das Sachbuch, whereas fiction is die Belletristik. The noun "literature" is very similar in German: die Literatur. When it comes to novels, there are the names for the different genres to learn, such as der Liebesroman (the romance novel) or der historische Roman (historical fiction).

OK, interessierst du dich für Literatur?

OK, are you interested in literature?

Caption 9, Nicos Weg: Das macht mir Spaß!
Play Caption

Und das wurde eben in diesem Science-Fiction-Roman beschrieben.

And just that was described in that science fiction novel.

Caption 73, Das 1. Newtonsche Gesetz: erklärt am Beispiel des Dodomobils
Play Caption

Liest du gerne oder hast du viele Bücher, zum Beispiel Romane oder Krimis?

Do you like to read or do you have a lot of books, for example novels or crime stories?

Captions 11-12, Nicos Weg: Das macht mir Spaß!
Play Caption

In German, a short story is die Kurzgeschichte.

Dieses wunderbare Buch mit Geschichten über die Berge und...

This wonderful book with stories about the mountains and...

Caption 41, Heidi: Der Schultest
Play Caption

In addition to fiction and non-fiction books, some people enjoy reading biographies or magazine articles:

Hinter all der großen musikalischen Revolution menschelt es in seiner Biografie - zum Glück!

Behind all the great musical revolution, there is humanity in his biography—fortunately!

Captions 30-31, Ludwig van Beethoven: 250. Geburtstag
Play Caption

In einem von der Zeitschrift Bravo veranstalteten Konzert spielen sie in der Stadt, die sie entdeckte.

In a concert organized by the magazine "Bravo," they play in the city that discovered them.

Captions 21-22, Die Beatles: In Deutschland
Play Caption

Hallo, Leon! Ich habe hier noch was für dich: einen Artikel über den Nemmers-Preis.

Hello, Leon! I have one more thing here for you: an article about the Nemmers Prize.

Caption 8, Die Pfefferkörner: Gerüchteküche
Play Caption

The last category that should be mentioned is poetry, of course!

Der eine Bruder saß unter einem Baum und verfasste Gedichte.

The one brother sat under a tree and wrote poems.

Caption 12, Märchen: Sagenhaft Die drei Brüder
Play Caption

Further Learning
Think about the last thing you read—how would you describe it? On Yabla German, you can watch the entirety of Nicos Weg: Das macht mir Spaß! to hear the vocabulary in context.