The train was on time

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A disillusioned 24-year-old German soldier, Andreas, travels on a troop train to the Eastern Front, haunted by a premonition of his death in five days. As he journeys towards his fate, he observes the chaos around him—the naïve soldiers, a painfully thin girl serving coffee, and the devastated landscape—with poignant clarity. Upon arriving in Poland the night before his predicted death, he meets Olina, a beautiful prostitute, and they embark on a quest to escape his grim destiny. The novel resonates deeply, capturing the fragility of life and the weight of impending doom. Critics hail it as a work of astonishing power, with one noting it reaches the highest level of creative originality and stylistic perfection. Another praises the author's unique literary outlook, while a third describes the experience of reading it as gripping, as if holding the soldier's fate in one's hands. The narrative's emotional depth and exploration of human vulnerability make it feel more necessary than ever, leaving readers stunned and reflective.