A striking amount of contemporary literature is set in Eastern Europe, including in multi-ethnic areas with German-speaking populations, like Silesia, Bohemia, Carinthia and parts of the former Soviet Union. Historical novels reveal hidden family stories and address cultural interpenetration as well as experiences of violence in the 20th century. In November 2020, readings by European authors such as Maja Haderlap and Gusel Jachina, in Hamburg, Munich and Weimar, plus a conference in Berlin, will shine a spotlight on this phenomenon. The focus will be on the question of how literature can contribute to our understanding of cross-border cultural cooperation.
Partners: Staatsbibliothek zu Berlin–Preußischer Kulturbesitz (Berlin State Library–Prussian Cultural Heritage), Literaturhaus Berlin (Berlin House of Literature), German Culture Forum for Central and Eastern Europe in Potsdam and others.
With funding from the Federal Government Commissioner for Culture and the Media
Organiser: Federal Government Commissioner for Culture and the Media