Piet Grobler, born in Nystroom in 1959, grew up in the province of Limpopo and is one of South Africa’s most significant picture book illustrators. After completing his theology studies he was a minister of the Dutch Reformed Church for five years. In the early nineties he turned to art,
Peter Schneider was born in Lübeck in 1940 and grew up in Freiburg, where he began his studies in German language, history and philosophy. He completed his education in Berlin. He wrote speeches for SPD politicians during the Bundestag election campaign in 1965. Schneider quickly found a role as one
Péter Esterházy was born in Budapest in 1950. Although his grandfather owned land on a large-scale and was prime minister from 1917 to 1918, Esterházy grew up in poverty in a remote village, to which his family had been deported after the communist seizure of power. After going to a
Ouyang Jianghe, a significant figure in modern Chinese poetry, was born in 1956 in Luzhou in the province of Sichuan. According to the »Down to the Countryside Movement«, he was sent to work as a tea grower after leaving school. From 1979 he did four years military service. Ouyang Jianghe
Owen Sheers was born on the Fiji islands in 1974 and grew up in Abergavenny, South Wales and in London. He finished his studies at New College, Oxford, and at the University of East Anglia. Alongside his literary activities Sheers is also a freelance journalist, television host, and actor. His
Omar Akbar Omar Akbar has been one of the most influential hosts of the “Reflections” programme of the international literature festival berlin since 2007. He has focused on the literary exploration of big cities and metropolises, and their specific urban character. In his series Urban Worlds – World Cities he
Nora Iuga was born in Bucharest in 1931. She comes from an artist family and grew up in several countries, including Germany, Belgium, and the Netherlands, where her parents went on tour for two years, as well as in the Transylvanian city of Sibiu and in the Romanian capital. After
Natalka Sniadanko was born in Lviv, Ukraine in 1973. She studied Ukrainian language and literature at the local University and then went to Freiburg im Breisgau, Germany, where she studied Slavonic and Romance studies. After her return, she worked as an editor at the Lviv newspaper »Postup«. Her novel »Kolekcija
born in Istanbul in 1957, is a social scientist, publicist and women’s rights activist. She studied economics and sociology and wrote her doctoral thesis on Islam in everyday life. She has published numerous books, most recently »The Unholy Family: How Islamic Tradition Deprives Women and Children of Rights « (2019).
Nancy Huston was born in Calgary, Canada in 1953. At the age of six, after her mother had left the family, she spent a few months in Germany with her future stepmother and learned to speak German. At fifteen she followed her father and stepmother from Canada to Wilton in
Nahoko Uehashi was born in Tokyo, Japan, in 1962. Since the publication of her first book in the »Moribito« series in 1996 she has been counted among the most prominent names in Asian fantasy literature. After completing her studies in cultural anthropology she did her doctorate on indigenous Australians.She currently
Mihály Víg was born in Budapest in 1957 into a family of musicians. At the age of 21 he founded the band »Balaton«, with whom he still performs. Between 1982 and 1985 he was a member of the band »Trabant«, whose concerts were considered to be legendary events in the
