Where History Crawls on the Skin …
Katharina Raabe on Literature from Europe’s East
Deutsche Fassung
Abstract
Katharina Raabe, book editor for Suhrkamp, analyses the metabolism that takes place between reading and experience. She reveals what is particular about East European literature and points out the hurdles to be overcome before authors such as Andrukhovych, Ćosić, Darvasi or Stasiuk can establish themselves in the German book market. Non-fiction books about Eastern Europe are particularly difficult to publish. Books from the pen of inspired vagabonds are more and more important for intellectually tapping into this realm. In this particular genre, geographical, political, and historical aspects converge. Journals such as Osteuropa will remain important if they succeed in becoming forums where authors can explain the latest developments with greater reflection and more penetrating analysis than newspapers allow, and if they can overcome the anachronistic dichotomy between academic journal and popular magazine.
(Osteuropa 12/2005, pp. 101–112)