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Cambridge University Press 978-0-521-19237-8 - The Novel in German Since 1990 Edited by Stuart Taberner Frontmatter More information THE NOVEL IN GERMAN SINCE Diversity is one of the defining characteristics of contemporary German-language literature, not just in terms of the variety of authors writing in German today, but also in relation to theme, form, technique and style. However, common themes emerge: the Nazi past, transnationalism, globalisation, migration, religion and ethnicity, gender and sexuality, and identity. This book presents the novel in German since 1990 through a set of close readings both of international bestsellers (including Daniel Kehlmann’s Measuring the World and W. G. Sebald’s Austerlitz) and of less familiar, but important texts (such as Yadé Kara’s Selam Berlin). Each novel dis- cussed in the volume has been chosen on account of its aesthetic quality, its impact and its representativeness; the authors featured, among them Nobel Prize winners Günter Grass, Elfriede Jelinek and Herta Müller, demonstrate the energy and quality of contem- porary writing in German. st ua rt ta ber ner is Professor of German at the University of Leeds. He has previously edited The Cambridge Companion to Günter Grass (2009) and Contemporary German Fiction: Writing in the Berlin Republic (2007). © in this web service Cambridge University Press www.cambridge.org Cambridge University Press 978-0-521-19237-8 - The Novel in German Since 1990 Edited by Stuart Taberner Frontmatter More information THE NOVEL IN GERMAN SINCE edited by STUART TABERNER © in this web service Cambridge University Press www.cambridge.org Cambridge University Press 978-0-521-19237-8 - The Novel in German Since 1990 Edited by Stuart Taberner Frontmatter More information cambridge university press Cambridge, New York, Melbourne, Madrid, Cape Town, Singapore, São Paulo, Delhi, Tokyo, Mexico City Cambridge University Press The Edinburgh Building, Cambridge cb2 8ru, UK Published in the United States of America by Cambridge University Press, New York www.cambridge.org Information on this title: www.cambridge.org/9780521192378 © Cambridge University Press 2011 This publication is in copyright. Subject to statutory exception and to the provisions of relevant collective licensing agreements, no reproduction of any part may take place without the written permission of Cambridge University Press. First published 2011 Printed in the United Kingdom at the University Press, Cambridge A catalogue record for this publication is available from the British Library Library of Congress Cataloguing in Publication data The novel in German since 1990 / [edited by] Stuart Taberner. p. cm. Includes bibliographical references and index. isbn 978-0-521-19237-8 (hardback) 1. German fiction–20th century–History and criticism. 2. German fiction–21st century– History and criticism. 3. German fiction–Europe, German-speaking–History and criticism. I. Taberner, Stuart. pt772.n66 2011 833.9209–dc22 2011015313 isbn 978-0-521-19237-8 Hardback Cambridge University Press has no responsibility for the persistence or accuracy of URLs for external or third-party internet websites referred to in this publication, and does not guarantee that any content on such websites is, or will remain, accurate or appropriate. © in this web service Cambridge University Press www.cambridge.org Cambridge University Press 978-0-521-19237-8 - The Novel in German Since 1990 Edited by Stuart Taberner Frontmatter More information Contents List of contributors page vii Acknowledgements viii Introduction: The novel in German since 1990 1 Stuart Taberner 1. Robert Schindel’s Gebürtig (Born-Where) 19 Helmut Schmitz 2. Günter Grass’s Ein weites Feld (Too Far Afield) 35 Rebecca Braun 3. Thomas Brussig’s Helden wie wir (Heroes Like Us) 50 Anna Saunders 4. Christa Wolf’s Medea. Stimmen (Medea. A Modern Retelling) 64 Georgina Paul 5. Zafer Şenocak’s Gefährliche Verwandtschaft (Perilous Kinship) 79 Moray McGowan 6. Monika Maron’s Endmoränen (End Moraines) 94 Katharina Gerstenberger 7. Martin Walser’s Ein springender Brunnen (A Gushing Fountain) 108 Kathrin Schödel 8. Michael Kleeberg’s Ein Garten im Norden (A Garden in the North) 123 Stephen Brockmann 9. Christian Kracht’s Faserland (Frayed-Land) 136 Julian Preece v © in this web service Cambridge University Press www.cambridge.org Cambridge University Press 978-0-521-19237-8 - The Novel in German Since 1990 Edited by Stuart Taberner Frontmatter More information vi Contents 10. Elfriede Jelinek’s Gier (Greed) 151 Helen Finch 11. Karen Duve’s Dies ist kein Liebeslied (This Is Not a Love-Song) 165 Alison Lewis 12. Herta Müller’s Herztier (The Land of Green Plums) 180 Lyn Marven 13. W. G. Sebald’s Austerlitz 195 Mary Cosgrove 14. Walter Kempowski’s Alles umsonst (All for Nothing) 211 Karina Berger 15. F. C. Delius’s Mein Jahr als Mörder (My Year as a Murderer) 226 Anne Fuchs 16. Yadé Kara’s Selam Berlin 241 Petra Fachinger 17. Daniel Kehlmann’s Die Vermessung der Welt (Measuring the World) 255 Stuart Taberner 18. Günter Grass’s Beim Häuten der Zwiebel (Peeling the Onion) 270 Monika Shafi Select bibliography 284 Index 302 © in this web service Cambridge University Press www.cambridge.org Cambridge University Press 978-0-521-19237-8 - The Novel in German Since 1990 Edited by Stuart Taberner Frontmatter More information Contributors karina berger, University of Leeds rebecca braun, Lancaster University stephen brockmann, Carnegie Mellon University mary cosgrove, University of Edinburgh petra fachinger, Queen’s University, Canada helen finch, University of Leeds anne fuchs, University of St Andrews katharina gerstenberger, University of Cincinnati alison lewis, University of Melbourne moray mcgowan, Trinity College Dublin lyn marven, University of Liverpool georgina paul, StHilda’s College, Oxford julian preece, University of Wales, Swansea anna saunders, Bangor University helmut schmitz, University of Warwick kathrin schödel, Universität Erlangen monika shafi, University of Delaware stuart taberner, University of Leeds vii © in this web service Cambridge University Press www.cambridge.org Cambridge University Press 978-0-521-19237-8 - The Novel in German Since 1990 Edited by Stuart Taberner Frontmatter More information Acknowledgements Without the support of the Modern Humanities Research Association (MHRA) and the School of Modern Languages at Leeds, which gener- ously funded a workshop in Leeds in September 2009 at which most of the contributors were present, this book would have been a less coherent and less ambitious enterprise. I am especially grateful, of course, to all the contributors to the vol- ume for their hard work and forbearance with my editing. As always, I am also indebted to my colleagues at Leeds, particularly for their support and enthusiasm. Most of all, of course, I am grateful to my family, and especially to Ali and our son Ivor as we eagerly await our new arrival! This book is dedicated to all three. viii © in this web service Cambridge University Press www.cambridge.org.