The literary form of the narrative plays a significant role in the overall work of Siegfried Lenz. Alongside his major novels, volumes of stories have repeatedly appeared. The storyteller Lenz has always accompanied the novelist. This volume continues what has already become a tradition: the spectrum between tragedy and comedy, the revelation of human shortcomings and interpersonal relationships, the interplay of fear and hope. In everyday life, Siegfried Lenz uncovers the fateful, and his stories illuminate questions of our time. For instance, the young Ludmilla, who grew up in the natural world of the Siberian tundra, encounters in distant Germany an attitude towards life that must remain foreign and incomprehensible to her. And: What can happen to an ordinary soldier who does not function like everyone else? What becomes of a man who wants to achieve something that contradicts his character? Late inquiries into a bravery medal reveal that in war, orders inevitably triumph over any humane impulse.