''Grand Hotel'' (original German ''Menschen im Hotel,'' "People in the Hotel") is a 1929 novel by Vicki Baum, which was the basis for the 1932 film '' Grand Hotel''. It should not be confused with '' Berlin Hotel'' (original German ''Hotel Berlin''), published in 1945, which deals with the situation in Germany towards the end of

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

. The film ''Grand Hotel'' was remade as '' Week-End at the Waldorf'' (1945). Baum first adapted the novel herself later in 1929 for an eponymous play, and it was adapted again in 1930 in the United States by William A. Drake and in 1931 in Britain by

Edward Knoblock Edward Knoblock (born Edward Gustavus Knoblauch; 7 April 1874 – 19 July 1945) was a playwright and novelist, originally American and later a naturalised British citizen. He wrote numerous plays, often at the rate of two or three a year, of whic ...

as '' Grand Hotel''. Much later, it became a successful 1989 musical which is still regularly revived around the world. A very successful English translation, by Basil Creighton, was published in 1930 by

Geoffrey Bles David Geoffrey Bles (1886–1957) was a British publisher, with a reputation for spotting new talent. He started his eponymous publishing firm in London in 1923 and published the first five books of C.S. Lewis' ''Narnia'' series. Early life Bl ...

, London. In later times, "Grand Hotel" came to be the unofficial name for a subgenre of novels. Thus, ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

'' review of Paul Gallico's 1969 book '' The Poseidon Adventure'', about a group of passengers attempting to escape from a capsized

ocean liner An ocean liner is a passenger ship primarily used as a form of transportation across seas or oceans. Ocean liners may also carry cargo or mail, and may sometimes be used for other purposes (such as for pleasure cruises or as hospital ships). Ca ...

, noted that "Mr. Gallico collects a ''Grand Hotel'' of shipboard dossiers. These interlocking histories may be damp with sentimentality as well as brine—but the author's skill as a storyteller invests them with enough suspense to last the desperate journey."

References

1929 German-language novels Austrian novels Austrian novels adapted into films Novels by Vicki Baum Novels set in hotels {{1920s-novel-stub