Nam Le was born in Vietnam in 1978 and grew up in Australia. Although he graduated in Law at Melbourne University, he only worked as a lawyer for a short time and soon found himself called to writing. In an interview he ascribed his change of heart to his own
Morris Gleitzman was born in the Lincolnshire town of Sleaford in 1953 and grew up in suburban London. According to his own account, he spent his childhood devouring every book he could lay his hands on. In 1969 his family emigrated to Australia. While he took on various temporary jobs,
Mort Rosenblum, reporter, author, and educator, has covered stories on seven continents since the 1960s, from war in Biafra to tango dancing by the Seine. He was editor-in-chief of the »International Herald Tribune«; special correspondent for The Associated Press; AP bureau chief in Africa, Southeast Asia, Argentina, and France; and
Moritz Rinke, born in 1967 in Worpswede, studied applied theater studies in Giessen. He worked for the »Tagesspiegel« as a columnist and reporter from 1994 to 1996. He was twice awarded the Axel Springer Prize and a collection of his texts was published in 2001 as »Der Blauwal im Kirschgarten«
Mohammed Achaari was born in Moulay Driss Zerhoun, Marokko, in 1951. He studied law at Mohammed V University, Rabat, graduating in 1975. He started his literary career with a short story «Waiting for the Death of the Father» in 1967 and his first collection of poetry, »Sahil Al Khail Al
Miriam Toews was born in the Mennonite town of Steinbach, Manitoba, in central Canada in 1964. After high school she moved to Montreal, travelled Europe, and returned to Manitoba only for her studies. She did her bachelor’s degree in cinematography, and studied journalism in Halifax. She produced numerous radio documentaries,
Miguel Syjuco was born in 1976 in the Philippine capital city Manila. Fleeing with his parents from the Marcos regime, he spent a decade of his childhood in Canada, but otherwise grew up in Manila. Against what his father, an active politician, hoped for, his youngest son already knew from
Melinda Nadj Abonji was born in the small town of Bečej in Serbia. Her family belonged to the Hungarian minority there in the province of Vojvodina. At the age of five, she emigrated with her parents to Switzerland, where she grew up next to Lake Zurich.At the University of Zurich,
Meira Chand (1942), daughter of a Swiss mother and an Indian father, was born and raised in London. After high school she studied arts at the St. Martin’s School of Art, then specialized in textile design at Hammersmith Art School. She married an Indian business man, with whom she left
Martin Algus born 1973, is currently the most successful Estonian playwright. His debut plays »Thirst« and »You are!« won the first prizes in the 2007 New Drama Competition; his play »Postmodern Households« was awarded first prize in the same competition in 2009. With »Contact«, Algus won the competition New Baltic
Mario Vargas Llosa was born in 1936 in Arequipa, Peru, and grew up in Bolivia, northern Peru and Lima. There he studied literature and law and received his doctorate in Madrid. Together with García Márquez, Cortázar, and Fuentes, he belongs to the quartet of the boom in Latin American literature.
Marie Luise Knott born in Cologne in 1953, she studied political sciences and Roman literature. For many years she worked as an editor for publishing houses. Today she is an independent journalist, translator and author. The former chief editor of the German issue of »Le Monde diplomatique« published many works
