The German-Jewish poet and literary historian Ludwig Strauss (1892-1953) had to struggle throughout his life for the publication of his work. Despite endorsements from influential friends, he remained dependent on breadwinning jobs. He worked as a dramaturge at the Düsseldorf Schauspielhaus and was a lecturer at the Technical University of his birthplace, Aachen, until he was dismissed from his position by the National Socialists and emigrated to Israel in 1935. It was only after his death that Strauss' work found a worthy framework with the long-out-of-print three-volume selection by Werner Kraft (1963). The first volume of the complete edition now published by the German Academy includes not only novellas, stories, fairy tales, and aphoristic prose but also Strauss' translations of Hasidic tales.