Emmy von Rhoden

Born Emilie Auguste Karoline Henriette Kühne in Magdeburg, she published under the pen name Emmy von Rhoden and became known as a German writer of fiction for girls and young readers. She is most closely associated with Der Trotzkopf, first published in 1885, which is often described as an early model of the Backfischroman—a coming-of-age story centered on adolescent girls.

Her writing career developed alongside family life. She married the writer and journalist Hermann Friedrich, and biographical sources note that the family lived in several German cities, including Berlin, Eisenach, Leipzig, and Dresden. She died in Dresden in 1885, the same year her best-known book appeared.

Emmy von Rhoden's reputation rests above all on the staying power of Der Trotzkopf, which became a children's classic in German-speaking literature. Her literary legacy continued within her family as well: her daughter Else Wildhagen later carried the story world forward with sequels.