How has Chinese society changed since the end of the Mao era? What generational ruptures define this shift, and how do young Chinese people grapple with their history? Zhang Yueran, one of China’s most important literary voices, explores family and social conflicts in her novels, addressing themes of guilt, memory,
A cosmopolitan city with a vibrant nightlife, housing crisis, and second-hand stores… But is 2099 Berlin still the Berlin of 2025? No! On the threshold of the next century, dancers have become cyborgs, properties are managed by AI, and transportation has become a luxury. In this cyberpunk thriller, the author
A nine-year-old crosses deserts, climbs fences, and is detained on his journey to reunite with his parents. As an adult, he writes about his trip from El Salvador to the U.S. – a journey which is marked by displacement and resilience. Zamora tells the story of those who traveled with
What does gender mean in a world that is searching for new forms of living together – across the boundaries of species and bodies? For Gabriela Wiener, the body is an anti-colonial laboratory of intimacy. Luisa Reyes Retana writes about female collectives as a site of resistance. In her poetry,
Three rivers, three countries, one linguistic movement: Franziska Füchsl receives this year’s Nature Writing Prize for »Am Rande der Müh«, a poetic text about the western Mühlviertel region, its watery topography, and thinking along the river. Füchsl interweaves geology and history with a playful gesture. Her text feels its way
A great-great-grandfather who brought thousands of artifacts from Peru and Bolivia to Europe in the 19th century – and nearly discovered Machu Picchu; a father with a double life; and at the center of it all: a narrator who shares the author’s name. Gabriela Wiener’s autofictional work is a wild
Shuang Xuetao – LièrénHUNTERAn ambulance struggles in vain to find a hospital at night, a failed actor is standing on the rooftop of a highrise as he tries his hand at assassination, a once-legendary knife fighter toils in a factory. In »Hunter« [trans. Jeremy Tiang], Shuang Xuetao depicts a China
»Kick the Latch« ventures into the rough world of horse racing tracks, into the forgotten hinterlands of the USA. Based on conversations with trainer Sonia, the novel tells the story of a life in dense vignettes – straightforward, gritty, and fast-paced. Scanlan will be living in Chemnitz for a time
What is ›exile literature‹? Is it literature that explores the theme of exile or literature written in exile? Can literature even be summarized under the term ›exile‹? And who actually defines what exile is? Journalist Can Dündar and filmmaker Irene Langemann join author Uwe Wittstock to discuss historical and contemporary
In a series of short readings, authors present texts and poems at four different locations within the Documentation Centre. Between intervals, audience members are invited to move freely between spaces and presentations. Exhibition Hall: Poetry of Exile at the touch of a button Press here for poetry. The Exile Poetry
How freely can we shape our own lives? In her debut novel »Adlergestell«, Laura Laabs tells the story of three friends from East Berlin whose paths diverge dramatically as they navigate the tangled urban jungle of post-reunification Berlin – told with sharp wit and irony. Radio host Jürgen Kuttner –
Who gets to choose where they live today – and how does migration shape those who set out on their journey? The authors Javier Zamora and Tsitsi Dangarembga discuss what it means to write about migration in a world that increasingly restricts and criminalizes freedom of movement. It is about
