Review by Eike Wienbarg on the new volume of stumbling blocks
The story behind the name Eike Wienbarg October 18, 2020 in the Weser-Kurier In three articles for the new book “Stumbling blocks in Bremen - Biographical search for traces - Neustadt”, the Syker Ilse Zelle dedicates herself to the Polak family, who also lived in Weyhe. Syke/Weyhe/Bremen. The name of the Jewish-Christian Polak family is closely linked to the community of Weyhe. In 1995, a street was named after Carl Polak, and his son Otto is an honorary citizen of the community. The Syker author and former teacher at the Cooperative Comprehensive School (KGS) Brinkum Ilse Zelle wrote a book about the life of Otto Polak in 2010. On the occasion of her project looking for traces of topics from the National Socialist era in the region, she invited Otto Polak to the school together with her students. Now Zelle has dealt with the story of Polak's father Carl, his uncle Siegfried and his grandmother Adele. For the sixth volume of the series “Stolpersteine in Bremen – Biographical Search for Traces”, which is about the stumbling blocks…
Review by Kerstin Panhorst on Doğan Akhanlı's "Madonna's Last Dream"
Following his reading in Steinhagen, Kerstin Panhorst published on October 13th. a review of Doğan Akhanlı's novel "Madonna's Last Dream". Many thanks to the colleagues for the positive media coverage!
Review by Martin Römpp on Amir Shaheen's "I'm not a foreigner, that's just my name"
Amir Shaheen's new book is reviewed in the 06/2020 issue of ROCKS magazine. Many thanks to the colleagues for the kind review!
Podcast with Kurt Scharf and Mahmood Falaki
Die iranische Gemeinde führt derzeit das Projekt „Meine Werte – Deine Werte – Unsere Werte” durch, welches anstrebt einen Dialog zwischen Migrant*innen und Nicht-Migrant*innen zu herzustellen. Im rahmen dieses Projektes finden die „Liter(IR)ania” Gespräche zu zeitgenössischer iranischer Literatur statt. Wir freuen uns, dass daran auch Autoren aus unserem Verlag teilgenommen haben. Die Gespräche können als Podcast nachgehört werden: Kurt Scharf sprach hier über seine neu herausgegebene Anthologie „Halt aus in der Nacht bis zum Wein” mit den schönsten persischen Poesien aus dem zwanzigsten Jahrhundert und Mahmood Falaki sprach hier über seinen neuen Titel „Ich bin Ausländer und das ist auch gut so”.
The poem of the week from the new volume of poetry "Zwangst" by Eberhard Pfleiderer
On the occasion of the anniversary of the right-wing extremist attack on the synagogue in Halle, our poem of the week is "The Exception" by Eberhard Pfleiderer. With clear words, a fine sense of rhythm and a lively communication between image and text, Eberhard Pfleiderer deals with the increasing shift to the right in German society in his new volume of poetry "Zwangst". Here is the link to our Facebook page
Eva Korhammer's review of Inge Buck's "Corona Diary"
""It is in the most individual that the general becomes visible," Adorno tells us. He would have appreciated and perhaps used Inge Buck's personally crafted armor against an invisible enemy." It is almost expected from authors who are in life, their contribution to the pandemic that determines our present. It is not surprising that Inge Buck has also become more attentive, as she has long been crossing boundaries with her texts and offering approaches to understanding. Corona Diary is the title of Inge Buck's most recent work, and its title, quoted from French, reveals something of her personal attitude: I would rather die than not kiss. Inge Buck may have only come up with the title while she was at work, as she started making diary entries for herself in February, collecting snippets of words, moods, observations about the pandemic that we all heard and saw during this time. When she becomes unsure about...
Bilingual poetry by Widad Nabi published
Vor einem Jahr erschien Widad Nabis Lyrikband „Kurz vor dreißig, …küss mich“ im Sujet Verlag. Er hat uns so gut gefallen, dass wir ihn jetzt noch mal herausgebracht haben, diesmal als zweisprachige Edition mit dem Arabischen Original neben der Deutschen Übersetzung. Widad Nabi, die selbst aus Syrien nach Deutschland geflüchtet ist und über ihre Fluchterfahrung sowie ihr Leben in Syrien und Deutschland schreibt, ist ein regelrechter „Rising Star“ der hiesigen Lyrikszene. Man schaue sich die spannenden Interviews an, die auf ihrer Autorenseite verlinkt sind.
New short stories by Fabian Schefold with collages by Monica Schefold
Fabian Schefolds „Herr A- Arbeitsgeschichten” ist ein Band mit humorvollen Kurzgeschichten über den Arbeitsalltag. Gerade an so grauen Tagen wie diesen lässt es sich gut schmunzeln mit Fabian Schefolds Beobachtungen zur Absurdität des Arbeitsalltages. Ein Überarzt, der nur ein abgebrochenes Germanistikstudium vorweisen kann, übernimmt die Fälle, bei denen die Fachärzte nicht mehr weiter wissen und eine Persönlichkeitsstylingmanagerin berät Menschen, die nach Arbeit suchen, zu ihrem Charakter. Beim Lesen fragt man sich häufig, ob diese Berufe von Schefold erfunden wurden oder tatsächlich existieren – zuzutrauen wäre es unserer Gesellschaft jedenfalls. So schafft es Schefold nicht nur humorvoll zu sein, sondern auch zum Denken anzuregen.
At Bunten und binnen (09/18/20): Special observations from a woman from Bremen: The Corona diary
The work of art by Inge Buck and Gunther Gerlach, which was recently published by us, is presented in this video contribution by the colorful and binnen again in a compact and visually appealing way. It tells of the observations from a very strange time... Click here to view the colorful and internal contribution. Have lots of fun with it!
Amir Shaheen is “not a foreigner” – that's just his name | Aachen newspaper, September 10th, 2020
»These dialogues with plenty of situation comedy provoked the audience in KuBa to constantly recurring laughter. […] The German author chose the humorous and exaggerated presentation of his autobiographical experiences instead of pointing fingers.« Silvia Jagodzinska, Aachener Nachrichten, September 10, 2020
"Pandemic in time lapse - Inge Buck's corona diary", an article by Alexandra Knief in the WeserKurier
In the Weser-Kurier-Edition from 20.08. A positive review of Inge Buck's new publication "I'd rather die than not kiss" was published under the heading "Books in Conversation" (to our great delight!). A big thank you goes to the author!
"I'm not a foreigner, that's just my name” – Amir Shaheen in an interview with journalist Marie Veelen
"A native of Altaen on the subject of migration" - in a small interview with Marie Veele, author Amir Shaheen reveals interesting details about his new novel "I'm not a foreigner, my name is just that" to his dear readers and also comments on the currently much-discussed topic of racism and related police violence. Link to the article: https://www.come-on.de/lennetal/altena/ich-kein-auslaender-heisse-autor-amir-shaheen-berichtet-ueber-sein-neues-buch-thema-migration-13819258. html
"Forough Farrochsād, poetess of protest” – An article by Nina Abassi in humanistic! magazine
Today we would like to draw your attention to a thought-provoking article that appeared some time ago in the humanistische! magazine (issue 02/2020). Forugh Farrochsād, who we published German translations of her poems in 2018, is described here as Iran's most important modern poet. Her work mercilessly holds up a mirror to the society of her country of origin and breaks a number of taboos in the process. The article reminds us in detail of the life story of a brave and at the same time very tragic figure in Iranian literary history. Published by Forough Farrochsād in Sujet Verlag: Jene Tage (5th edition 2018), Jene Tage - Special Edition (2017) Click here to view the digital version of the article!
Widad Nabi on the ZDF authors' stage of aspects
We are proud of the television report with and about our author Widad Nabi on ZDF. Congratulations! Shortly before thirty, ...kiss me by Widad Nabi, translated from Arabic by Suleman Taufiq, 2019, with us at Sujet Verlag. https://www.zdf.de/kultur/instrumente/widad-nabi-kurz-vor-dreissig-kuess-mich-100.html?fbclid=IwAR2Psvuev96QPSn8cfthqnOCx6YwVOtsR1ElIWzgKAmE0ba9HmgO85_yVeQ
"violence against women. Some did not survive” – An article by Widad Nabi in “Zeit Online”
"Violence against women is often attributed to the culture around them. This is wrong: it results from poverty, a lack of education and the colonial legacy.” https://www.zeit.de/kultur/2020–04/power-against-women-naher-osten-europa-frauenbild?fbclid=IwAR10f0siN-VTyD7RBBq5xOZaK5kvW6KvkPhWOsnIwUeB-J25HPRif-8L9vk
What Corona means for the people of Iran - An essay by Fariba Vafi
On Sunday, April 19, 2020, the Tagesspiegel published an essay by our author Fariba Vafi on the current situation in Iran entitled "We never believe what we hear". A pathological distrust is eating up Iran's society from the inside out at least as much as the corona virus from the outside. https://www.tagesspiegel.de/politik/was-corona-fuer-die-menschen-im-iran-bedeutet-wir-glauben-nie-was-wir-hoeren/25750076.html In German, Vafi recently published the Novels "Tarlan" and "The Dream of Tibet" with us at Sujet Verlag. Fariba Vafi, born in Iran's East Azerbaijan province in 1963 and now based in Tehran, is one of her country's most respected and successful storytellers. In Germany she received the LiBeraturpreis 2017.
New review and radio commentary - "One week, one life" by Nassir Djafari
We are happy! Yesterday the WDR published an extremely positive review of Djafari's debut novel “One Week, One Life”. Journalist and author Ulrich Noller writes: “If it sounds like “literature with a migration background,” that is largely true, but with Nassir Djafari this factor probably only plays a role in homeopathic doses: He was born in Iran in 1952 and has lived in Germany since 1957. Nassir Djafari is an economist, he has dedicated his professional life to development work, has published in this context and also academically, but not yet literary. His first novel “A Week, a Life” (Sujet Verlag, Euro 24) is a late debut - with an astonishing story. The story is about a middle-aged man, a scientist, a single parent who, as can happen, has almost completely lost contact with his son, who is about to graduate.
Interview with Suleman Taufiq in the Weser-Kurier
The Weser-Kurier interview with the author and translator Suleman Taufiq was published in yesterday's issue of the Weser-Kurier and provides an interesting insight into the work on two wonderful works and Wise, the story of a demolition excavator who would much rather build than destroy, and was translated into German by Suleman Taufiq. It is now available in two languages. "Josef's birthday" is the new collection of short stories by Suleman Taufiq, which deals with life in foreign cultures in a humorous way. Now also available online on the Weser-Kurier website https://www.weser-kurier.de/bremen/bremen-kultur_artikel,-keine-angst-vor-der-moderne-_arid,1906577.html
Widad Nabi returns to Vogue
Vogue published an online article with book tips in the spring – these tips also include the volume of poetry “Shortly before thirty, … kiss me” by our author Widad Nabi! We are proud and delighted that Widad Nabi has once again been recognized by Vogue. Here is the book
New article by Ramy Al-Asheq
An interesting article by Ramy Al-Asheq about the cultural cleansing in Syria appeared in the NZZ. Here is an excerpt for you: There are still writers who have remained in the country; they live in the regions controlled by the Asad regime. Power outages are part of their everyday lives, the rising cost of living bothers them as well as the dwindling freedom and the feeling of being more at the mercy of the security forces than ever. Some hope for a chance to escape – “into exile, wherever.” Others prefer internal exile in Syria, their own house, the fold of the family: the refuge they know is always better than one in a foreign country. more
Just arrived (from the press): Gunther Gerlach's new work "Lichter, die aus Schatten"!
Freshly arrived (printed): the book copies of Gunther Gerlach's new work “Lights that rise from shadows”! Here is one of the poems as a small foretaste: "I will conduct a trial against sadness. My accusers will be: A look into the pockets of power and the unripe fruit that the tree let fall will be a witness, in this, this one moment. And he has no doubt of his innocence when we sew up fearful voices. But the pain flees, it dives under the disease and healing is our anger." Available from February.
"I would love to be a cement mixer”
We have a wonderful new book coming out in spring 2020!! “I'd Love to Be a Concrete Mixer” is a children's book by Hussain Al‑Moutawaa in Arabic. We have had this great story translated by Suleman Taufiq and will soon be publishing our billingual (German-Arabic) edition. Here is a small excerpt from the text: "Haddam is a digger, about your age. When you look at him, you immediately notice how friendly and sweet he is. Haddam loves his family very much, but not the work he does. And his family doesn't like that at all." Haddam is incredibly sweet and his relatable and educational story is definitely recommended.
Bilingual Reading on “Night Wind”
On January 9th, 2020, a bilingual reading with Inge Buck and Madjid Mohit took place in the Sattler bookstore. Inge Buck read from her volume of poetry Nachwind, which contains poems about the rhythm of the seasons and their imperceptible loss. In addition, Madjid Mohit presented some of his translations of the texts into Persian. Multilingualism was then the subject of a discussion about literature and the importance of translations for it. There was also musical accompaniment with guitar and vocals by Mohit. Thanks to everyone involved for the lovely evening!
Interview mit Doğan Akhanlı
An interesting interview by Gerrit Wustmann with Doğan Akhanlı has appeared on Qantara.de. The two not only talk about the historical background of "Madonna's Last Dream", but also about the political significance of the novel and its reception in Turkey as well as the current political situation there. Themes that arise are guilt, innocence and looking the other way; today as then, here and in Turkey. Here's the interview!
Reading for the special edition Lothar Bührmann
We dedicated the evening of December 17, 2019 to the Bremen artist Lothar Bührmann, who died in August of this year. A reading with Inge Buck, Cornelius Kopffinke, Rudolph Bauer and Madjid Mohit took place in Villa Ichon. Not only poems that Lothar Bührmann had illustrated were read, but also texts by and about him. There was also musical accompaniment by Majid Mohit. The poems we read can be found in the special edition “Lothar Bührmann in words and pictures” which was published by us in October. It should honor his memory and keep him in our memories always.
Premiere of the Lyrikkalenders 2020
There was a surprisingly different reading in the Franz Leuwer bookstore on December 10, 2019. Texts for each month by four of the calendar's twenty-seven authors were read. Inge Buck, Elke Marion Weiß, Gunther Gerlach and Matthias Groll took part. Everyone read their own texts as well as other people's texts. An exception was made by Gunther Gerlach, who, to make things exciting, announced that anyone who wanted to hear his text had to buy the calendar themselves. There was also musical accompaniment by Madjid Mohit. Many thanks to everyone involved and especially to Ms. Plückebaum from the Franz Leuwer bookstore for the great collaboration!
Widad Nabi in the Vogue
Widad Nabi has appeared in the January issue of Vogue with her book of poems "Shortly before thirty, ... kiss me"! And we at Sujet Verlag are incredibly proud!!! This issue is about the future visions of women for radical equality and solidarity. Annett Gröschner writes about Nabi's texts: "In them she sings about the freedom of women, who love who and what they like, who rebel and oppose war with nothing but their bodies and their language." Beautiful photos by the author are also included. A presentation and reporting that really does justice to Widad Nabi's talent and work!
Habib Tengour and Redouane Belakhdar in Bremen
On December 5th there was a bilingual event with Habib Tengour and Redouane Belakhdar at the Instiut francais Bremen. Tengour read in French from his book "The Old Man from the Mountains" and there was an exciting contribution on the relationship between literature and politics as well as on the current political situation in Algeria from Belakhdar.
