I was given a question for Christmas – and quite a big one it was. No less than Who Are We? was on the agenda. This book by the journalist Gary Younge takes the reader’s thoughts into new directions. Every time I thought „Yes, that’s what I’m already doing. Ok, that’s something I could do better“, there was still another thought around the corner that I hadn’t even contemplated. All wrapped into stories about different people’s identities, why they feel comfortable (or too comfortable) in their own skin or why they don’t. Never really having to justify why I want to cross a particular border is a great privilege. I knew that before I’d read the book. But now I understand even better what it means not to be in that position. Plus: It’s great about Ireland ….
I pass the question on – and recommend the book to anybody who might want to discuss this big question with me and others.
Philosophical in 2013
A Reading in London
In my view, there is no better word than visceral to describe Hassan Blasim’s collection of short stories The Madman of Freedom Square. They touched me and they moved me deeply. The stories tell us about the futile nature of war, about displaced people and people who stay at home. Home is in war-torn Iraq, where life is often perilous and marked by the loves, the joys and fears of everyday life. Death comes unexpectedly at home in The Market of Stories, where reading about a shoe has the same effect on me as a film scene with boots in ‚All Quiet on the Western Front‘ – and is expected to turn up at every turn in the story The Truck to Berlin. I was lucky to be able to listen to Hassan Blasim and his English translator Jonathan Wright at an English PEN event, where they introduced the writer’s latest book The Iraqi Christ. They talked about the humour of the stories – a humour that doesn’t mask the horror. Humankind in all its rich facettes – I’m looking forward to reading more by Hassan Blasim.
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The writer John Boyne
… writes fiction for children and adults. First, I read The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas and introduced it to a group of kids. They all wanted to read about the precarious friendship between two boys who lived in dangerous times and different worlds. A sad and utterly readable story. I was hooked and wanted to understand this writer’s world better.
Next came Noah Barleywater runs away, followed by The Terrible Thing That Happened to Barnaby Brocket. Both books tell us what it feels like to be different. And how lonely it can be to be a child in a world of often indecipherable and incomprehensible adults. John Boyne evokes new destinies. And tells me as his adult reader how important it is to never lose our sense of wonder. I guess I ought to read one of John Boyne’s novels for adults next ….
Herbstzeit – Krimizeit?
Diese Frage kann ich eindeutig mit „ja“ beantworten. Wenn die Tage länger werden, gruselt sich’s schöner. Und wenn der Krimi dann noch mit gutem Essen (meistens) und mit leckeren Weinen von der Mosel aufwartet, ist er in 2 Tagen „verschlungen“.
„Teufelsfrucht“ von Tom Hillenbrand ist eine schöne Einführung in die Welt der Gourmetküche und warum nicht immer alles Käse ist, was so aussieht, riecht und schmeckt. Außerdem lernt man ein bisschen Letzeburgisch, streift mit dem Antihelden Xavier Kieffer durch die Kasematten und wird beim Lesen richtig hungrig. Enjoy!
A fashion statement
I like clothes and what they say about me and others. I like reading Vogue magazine. And I was intrigued by ‚The Thoughtful Dresser‘, because the title implied that it goes beyond skin-deep observations on fashions. In fact, the book does all but that and Linda Grant (who has a blog with the same title) finds unusual ways into the minds of fashionistas. She writes about Auschwitz. And 9/11. About the truths of nakedness and the comfort (and discomforts) of a pair of shoes. And the family stories told by handbags. One German translation of ‚thoughtful‘ is ‚wohlüberlegt‘ – I try to apply that to the clothes and accessories I wear. And another is ’nachdenklich‘ – and that’s what the book made me.
Berlin liest
Berlin liest – eine Initiative des Internationalen Literaturfestivals Berlin. Ich las auch – bei herrlichem Spätsommerwetter. Die Kurzgeschichte ‚A Long Winter‘ aus dem Buch….
(Fotografiert von: Christiane Keilig)
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06/09/2012 · 20:37Women
If John Burnside writes well about men, Siri Hustvedt writes well about women. The title The Summer Without Men somehow implies who plays the main role. Men have a presence in this book. A presence that is examined and re-evaluated.
And then there are the women – remarkable in old, middle and young age. A very loving portrayal of what it means to be old and frail is one aspect that I loved about this book. And what it means to have hidden so much in a lifetime, yet to find a way to tell the story in the end (in the case of Abigail – one of the so-called Five Swans). Then there are the changes of perspective. The analysis of „indirect“ emotions (while watching a film) versus „direct emotions“ confronted with the death of a loved one. The dialogue with me, the reader. A woman myself, drawn into the circle in Boden.
After the bout of madness comes Mia’s healing. The only thing I was missing in that process was a female friend from her past. Somehow, that person didn’t seem to exist. Maybe she’ll come after the return to New York. After all, a substantially changed life always invites new people in. Let’s see where it takes the poet and teacher Mia. I liked her. And I liked reading about her circle.
Family men
I had met the author before I read the book. It was a beautiful summer evening in Berlin. Das Blaue Sofa – brilliantly hosted by Barbara Wahlster – was taken apart and the discussion began. About the importance of editors. And translators. Social networks were also mentioned. And when we all gathered on the roof of the house to admire the sights and building sites of ‚Unter den Linden‘, the conversation continued, the story unfolded and I knew what I wanted to read next. A Lie About My Father by John Burnside is one of those books that I won’t forget. It’s honest. It’s fiction and autobiography and it let me choose between the two. It is uncomfortable and heart-warming. It rummages in a family’s entrails and leaves me wondering why it’s so easy to take the wrong turn. And yes – it’s about addiction. Alcohol, other drugs – it’s all there. The mess, the hurt and the betrayals of self and others. And about men who want to hide.
At the beginning, there’s a quote by Patti Smith. I went to her concert the day after ‚Das Blaue Sofa‘.
Eine gelungene Übersetzung
Ich tue es selten. Englischsprachige Bücher in der Übersetzung lesen. Weil ich sie so gerne im Original lese. Bei John Banvilles Unendlichkeiten (Titel des Originals: The Infinities) habe ich eine wunderbare Entdeckung gemacht: Es kann Spaß machen, es zu tun. Großartig, wie Christa Schuenke die verschiedenen Sprachebenen vom Göttlichen zum Menschlichen und wieder zurück transportiert. Ein großes Lese- und Denkvergnügen!
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On Ireland
About time I wrote about a book by Colm Tóibín. Is Bad Blood travel writing? It is in a way. It talks about a pilgrimage that leads to a deeper understanding of a troubled nation – in the writer AND in the reader. It talks about a religious conflict and a wealth divide. About the music of Ireland (of course!), about literature and about killings. I recommend this book to anybody who’d like to learn about Northern Ireland, the Republic of Ireland and the people who live there. And about Colm Tóibín’s unique and insightful writing.
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