Gunter Grass, author of the The Tin Drum, Crabwalk, and many other works of fiction and nonfiction, announced in an interview Saturday that he served in Hitler’s Waffen SS, the combat arm of the Nazis during the Second World War.

The confession has stirred up mixed feelings among historians, reviewers, fans and Grass’ biographer. The CBC reports that Gunter “Grass has always been a critic of German society, pushing people to come to terms with their Nazi past. For decades, he has said that he was drafted in 1944 and held as a prisoner of war until 1946.”

Although many condemn Grass for keeping the secret for 60 years, there are those like German-Jewish writer Ralph Giordano who’ve offered support, “What’s worse than making a mistake is not coming to terms with it."

Günter Grass is one of Germany’s most celebrated contemporary writers. Novelist, poet, playwright, essayist and graphic artist, he was awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1999. A number of his books have been translated into English and are available in from Harcourt Trade Publishers. See books from Gunter Grass.