Thousands of prices just dropped across Thryft
Our price drop is now live! Find lowered prices on thousands of one-of-a-kind finds across Thryft
Free delivery to West Malaysia on orders of RM80 or more after discounts
Get 10% off all year round! Join Thryft Club

Your cart

Your cart is empty

Check out these collections!

Bestselling Fiction
Bestselling Nonfiction
Bestselling Books for Children
Vintage and Rare Books
Vinyl Records
Women's Clothing
Men's Clothing

Find more of what you love

Get thoughtful picks from Thryft’s ever-changing collection of pre-loved books, vinyl and CDs—plus occasional sales and events.

By signing up, you agree to receive marketing emails from Thryft. You can unsubscribe at any time.

Sale

The File: A Personal History

Save up to 49%
The File: A Personal History - Thryft
The File: A Personal History - Thryft

Cold War espionage personal journey revealed.

This dive into 'The File' offers a haunting look into a world where privacy is obliterated by state surveillance. Imagine finding a file about your life compiled by a secret police force—it's the stuff of dystopian novels, yet Timothy Garton Ash recounts his true experience. His quest to confront those who spied on him poignantly mirrors the universal desire to understand and reclaim one's narrative amidst political repression. It's a powerful read for anyone fascinated by history, personal freedom, and the resilience of the human spirit against the machinations of totalitarian regimes.

Note: While we do our best to ensure the accuracy of cover images, ISBNs may at times be reused for different editions of the same title which may hence appear as a different cover.
Sale

The File: A Personal History

Save up to 49%
Condition guide

Book Condition Guide

Books in Like New Condition

This book may contain very minor cosmetic defects, but it is in pristine condition. There should be no yellowing, no foxing, no water damage, and no annotations of any kind on the cover and the pages. For paperbacks, there should not be any crease marks on the spine. This book is good as new — lucky you!

*Books may be missing bundle media (e.g. CD, e-book code), if included.

Books in Very Good Condition

This book has been used, but it is still in a clean condition. There should be no foxing or annotations of any kind on the inner pages, but a sparse amount may be present on the cover, title pages, or outside edges of the book. There should be no water damage of any kind. For paperbacks, there may be light crease marks on the spine.

*Books may be missing bundle media (e.g. CD, e-book code), if included.

Books in Good Condition

We do our best to ensure the quality of our books, but there is no escaping the wear and tear that comes with time. Slight foxing and some annotations may be present on the pages and the cover. There should be no water damage of any kind. For paperbacks, there may be several crease marks on the spine.

*Books may be missing bundle media (e.g. CD, e-book code), if included.

Books in Well Read Condition

This is a well-read book, which means that the previous owner probably really enjoyed it! The cover and pages may include moderate foxing and annotations, but the text is not obscured and still readable. Moderate cosmetic defects and minor water damage may be present on the edges of the book. For paperbacks, there may be multiple crease marks on the spine.

*Books may be missing bundle media (e.g. CD, e-book code), if included.

 

Find out more about our process here.

ISBN: 9780006388470
Related Collections: Politics, History, Biographies & Memoirs
Related Topics: History, Politics, Biography

Description

When Timothy Garton Ash graduated from Oxford in 1978, he went to live in Berlin, ostensibly to research and write about Nazism. But once there, he gradually immersed himself in a study of the repressive political culture of East Germany. As if to return the favor, that culture--in the form of the dreaded East German secret police, the "Stasi"--secretly began studying him. As was Stasi's practice, over the years its study produced a considerable paper trail. After the fall of the East German communist regime, a government apparatus was established to allow those targeted to see their Stasi files, and Garton Ash discovered and pored over his. He then set about to interview the people who made this gross intrusion possible, the several case officers, and the numerous regular-citizen informers. The result is nothing short of a journey into the darkest recesses of the totalitarian mind, taking its place honorably alongside 1984 and Darkness at Noon.


Author: Timothy Garton Ash
Publication Date: 1997
 

Cold War espionage personal journey revealed.

This dive into 'The File' offers a haunting look into a world where privacy is obliterated by state surveillance. Imagine finding a file about your life compiled by a secret police force—it's the stuff of dystopian novels, yet Timothy Garton Ash recounts his true experience. His quest to confront those who spied on him poignantly mirrors the universal desire to understand and reclaim one's narrative amidst political repression. It's a powerful read for anyone fascinated by history, personal freedom, and the resilience of the human spirit against the machinations of totalitarian regimes.

Note: While we do our best to ensure the accuracy of cover images, ISBNs may at times be reused for different editions of the same title which may hence appear as a different cover.

You might enjoy this if…

View book details