German writer, Günter Grass, most famously known for The Tin Drum and other politically charged novels, has passed away at the age of 87.

A spokesman for Grass’ publishing house, Steidl, confirmed that he died Monday morning in a hospital in Luebeck.

“Günter Grass moved, enthralled, and made the people of our country think with his literature and his art,” said German President, Joachim Gauck, in a statement. “His literary work won him recognition early across the world, as witnessed not least by his Nobel prize. His novels, short stories, and his poetry reflect the great hopes and fallacies, the fears and desires of whole generations,”

Grass was from the Polish city, Danzig. After World War II, he dabbled in sculpting and poetry before penning his most famous work, The Tin Drum which is described as “one of the enduring literary works of the 20th century,” by the Swedish Academy.

He later wrote Cat and Mouse in 1961 and Dog Years in 1962, which he grouped with The Tin Drum to form the “Danzig Trilogy.”  This trilogy earned him the Nobel Prize in 1999. The Swedish Academy praised him for “the enormous task of reviewing contemporary history by recalling the disavowed and the forgotten: the victims, losers and lies that people wanted to forget because they had once believed in them.”

He was most known for urging the Germans to face their Nazi past, so it was huge shock when he revealed in is 2006 memoir that he had served in the Waffen-SS as a teenager. Many criticized this hypocrisy but others felt that the benefit of his works far outweighed the consequences of his lies.

According to Grass’ publisher, Gerhard Steidel, Grass “was fully concentrated on his work until the last moment.” His last book is set to publish this summer.