review
East Berlin provides the bleak landscape for this intriguing novel. The anonymous narrator’s exwife is in hospital with cancer, and the doctors can only treat her if the cause can be identified. Was it radiation? The narrator can help but only by going back to what happened over the course of a few days at his former workplace – traumatic events which have had a defining influence on his life and are likely to be the reason why he feels so isolated.
Themes of confusion and identity, change and conformity jostle with one another to reflect with skill the narrator’s inner turmoil
about the author
Inka Parei was born in Frankfurt am Main in 1967, and now lives in Berlin. Her first novel Die Schattenboxerin has been translated into thirteen languages. Parei has been awarded several prizes, including the Hans Erich Nossack Prize and the Ingeborg Bachmann Prize.
Previous works include:
Was Dunkelheit war (‘What Darkness was’, 2005); Die Schattenboxerin (The Shadowboxing Woman, 1999)
rights information
Translation rights sold to:
Die Kältezentrale will be published by Seagull Books
Translation rights available from:
Schöffling & Co.
Email: kathrin.scheel@schoeffling.de
translation assistance
This book is outside of the five-year window for guaranteed assistance with English language translation. We suggest getting in touch with the relevant funding body for an informal conversation about the possibility of support. Please refer to to our recommendations page for books that are currently covered by our funding guarantee.
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All recommendations from Autumn 2011