Alexander Kluge's unique position in modern German literature results from his diversified background as a film producer, social commentator, lawyer, and writer of fiction. All of these elements combine in his work to produce a rich collage of varying styles and techniques, often highly experimental in tone and quality. For several years during the 1960s Kluge was a leading figure among young West German writers who rejected traditional narrative forms in favor of a more cold-blooded, objective portrayal of modern reality using highly innovative techniques. His best-selling Schlachtbeschreibung (1964; translated as The Battle, 1967) was heralded as a model for the new "documentary" novel; in any case it was one of a few such novels ever written. Even after interest in literary experimentation faded with the end of the student and cultural unrest of the late 1960s, Kluge continued to publish difficult, often enigmatic short stories and "Hefte" (workbooks) attacking...