Isn't there another book out called the "new sorrows of young werther" which represents a modern update? Does anyone know how these titles are related?
There is such a book, and I believe it is by Plenzdorf and tracks an East German youth in the 1970s. It is actually quite good. It is essentially a modern update of the Sorrows of Young Werther. However, and perhaps interestingly, it reads more like a Catcher in the Rye with the protagonist acting like Holden Caulfield throughout the story. I am not sure if there is a translation in English at this point in time, but if you read German have at it.
Yeah, there is.
Is his protagonist a brilliant enthusiast of emotionalism, a self-absorbed villain, or something in between?
