The book takes place in an unspecified German city between the years 1925 and 1942. These were years of great turmoil and upheaval in German society. Following the defeat of the German Empire in 1918, the German economy continued to decline into the 1920s, with 1922 witnessing massive inflation. In 1923, the German government was forced to introduce a new currency system. One trillion of the old Papiermark (paper Marks) were set to equal one Rentenmark, which was quickly changed to the Reichsmark in 1924. Entire fortunes were wiped out, not unlike what happened to many during the Great Depression in the United States. Understandably, work was hard to come by during these years. In 1924, there were nearly one million unemployed citizens. In these times of uncertainty, the Nazi party, under the aegis of Adolph Hitler, rose in prominence.

Hitler was able to appeal to two topics on the minds of many Germans during the 1920s and 1930s. These two topics were economic concerns and social fear, specifically the fear of betrayal from within. Hitler and the Nazis promised an end to unemployment and reparations (money Germany had been paying the Allies since its defeat in World War I), by expanding public works, such as the construction of the Autobahn, and especially through rearmament of the military.