Category Archives: Memoir

Forgottenness by Tanja Maljartschuk, translated by Zenia Tompkins.

Posted on March 22, 2024 by mandywight

There are two parallel stories in Tanja Maljartschuk’s novel Forgottenness. It’s the story of Viacheslav Lypynskyi, born in 1882, an important figure in the early 20th century struggle for Ukrainian independence. It’s also the story of the narrator, a young … Continue reading →

Posted in Books in Translation, Books on Ukraine, History, Memoir, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

La Carte Postale- Anne Berest

Posted on March 13, 2024 by mandywight

On 6th January 2003 a postcard arrives at the home of Lélia and Pierre. It’s an old postcard of the Paris Opera Garnier, with four names written on the back: Ephraïm, Emma, Noémie and Jacques.  These are the names of … Continue reading →

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We would have told each other everything-Wir haetten uns alles gesagt- Judith Hermann

Posted on February 26, 2024 by mandywight

I was a keen reader of German writer Judith Hermann a little while back, loving her cool, distanced tone and elegant sentences. After a little gap since Letti Park, she’s come back into my life, through the excerpt of Wir … Continue reading →

Posted in Books in German, Memoir | Tagged , , , | 2 Comments

Lionheart- Loewenherz- by Monika Helfer

Posted on December 6, 2023 by mandywight

What a pleasure to reconnect with the world of Monika Helfer and die Bagage- the riff-raff. Löwenherz, Lionheart, is the final novel in Monika Helfer’s family story. The trilogy starts, in die Bagage, with her grandmother, then goes on to … Continue reading →

Posted in Books by Austrian writers, Books in German, Memoir | Tagged , , , | 1 Comment

East and West- Reading for #GermanLitMonth 2023

Posted on December 1, 2023 by mandywight

The real conversation in Berlin is about East and West. I was intrigued to hear this comment from American writer Lorrie Moore on the podcast Literary Friction in July. She was recommending Jenny Erpenbeck’s novel Kairos, and her words have … Continue reading →

Posted in Books in German, Books in Translation, History, Memoir, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

Welten Auseinander-Worlds Apart-by Julia Franck.

Posted on November 16, 2023 by mandywight

Julia Franck is best known amongst English readers for her novel The Blind Side of the Heart, a moving family story set during the Second World War. This time, in Worlds Apart, she’s writing about her own life, though she … Continue reading →

Posted in Books in German, Memoir, Uncategorized | Tagged , | 2 Comments

Maman by Sylvie Schenk-shortlisted for the German Book Prize 2023

Posted on October 14, 2023 by mandywight

Maman by Sylvie Schenk has been shortlisted for the German Book Prize 2023. It’s a novel based on the life of Sylvie Schenk’s mother, and, as memoir is one of my favourite genres, I was keen to read it. It’s … Continue reading →

Posted in Books in German, Memoir | Tagged , | 2 Comments

Women in Translation Month 2023

Posted on August 31, 2023 by mandywight

It’s the last day of August and Women in Translation Month, like the summer, is drawing to a close. Inevitably, I’m casting my mind back over this month’s reading and wondering what it’s all been about: what did I choose … Continue reading →

Posted in Books in Translation, Books set in Italy, Books set in South America, Memoir, Translation, Uncategorized | 6 Comments

Reading Getting Lost by Annie Ernaux

Posted on August 25, 2023 by mandywight

I’m a great fan of Annie Ernaux and so decided to read her book Getting Lost (Se Perdre), translated by Alison L. Strayer, for Women in Translation Month 2023. This is the diary of her one-year affair with a member … Continue reading →

Posted in Books in French, Books in Translation, Memoir | Tagged , , , | 1 Comment

Diary of an Invasion by Andrey Kurkov

Posted on February 7, 2023 by mandywight

It seems like a good time to be reading this account of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, with the one year anniversary approaching, on February 24th. Andrey Kurkov, a novelist well-known outside Ukraine, ( Death of a Penguin, Grey Bees) … Continue reading →

Posted in Books in English, Books on Ukraine, History, Memoir, Uncategorized | Tagged , , | 2 Comments