 His best-known works are "Billiards at Half-past Nine" (1959), "And Never Said a Word" (1953), "The Bread of Those Early Years" (1955), "The Clown" (1963), "Group Portrait with Lady" (1971), "The Lost Honour of Katharina Blum" (1974), and "The Safety Net" (1979).Despite the variety of themes and content in his work, there are certain recurring patterns