Sobering Romance (in German: Sachliche Romanze) is considered to be one of the best and beloved poems by Erich Kästner (1899–1974). It first was published in the Vossische Zeitung at Berlin on April 20, 1928, and was republished in Kästner's second volume of poetry Lärm im Spiegel (Noise in the mirror) a year later.