De Tovenaar by Colm Toibin

A spare, intimate fictionalized portrait of the German novelist Thomas Mann, tracing his rise to fame, complicated family relationships, concealed desires, and the moral compromises he makes as Europe descends into fascism and he lives in exile. Through restrained, evocative prose it explores the tensions between art and politics, public success and private cost, and the burdens of a life lived in the spotlight.