We are thrilled to welcome one of Austria's most interesting and well-known voices in recent Austrian literature, Laura Freudenthaler, together with renowned translator Tess Lewis at the ACF London.
Join us for this bilingual reading and discussion, offering you a fascinating insight into Freudenthaler's award-winning short story 'Der heißeste Sommer' (The Hottest Summer). Her text recently won the 3sat-prize at the prestigious Ingeborg Bachmann Prize, which takes place annually in Klagenfurt, the city of Bachmann’s birth.
Tess Lewis will present her translation of the story, commissioned especially for this event. The evening will be chaired by Andrea Capovilla (IBC) and followed by a Q&A.
The event is organised in cooperation with the Ingeborg Bachmann Centre for Austrian Literature & Culture at the Institute of Modern Languages Research.
Laura Freudenthaler studied German Literature and Philosophy in Vienna, where she now lives and works. Her stories 'Der Schädel von Madeleine' (Madeleine’s Skull) were published in 2014. Her novel Die Königin schweigt (The Queen is Silent) was awarded at the Bremer Literature Prize 2018 and chosen as best German debut at the Festival du Premier Roman 2018 in Chambéry. In 2019 she successfully published her second novel Geistergeschichte (Ghost Story), which won the European Union Prize for Literature. In 2020 Freudenthaler was nominated for the prestigious Ingeborg Bachmann Prize and was awarded one of the five available prizes.
Freudenthaler is our writer-in-residence 2022, co-hosted by the Ingeborg Bachmann Centre and the ACF London.
Tess Lewis is a widely acclaimed translator from German and French, including works by Austrian authors Peter Handke, Alois Hotschnig, Julya Rabinowich, and Doron Rabinovici. Her awards include the 2017 PEN Translation Award for her translation of Maja Haderlap’s novel Angel of Oblivion and a Guggenheim Fellowship. Her essays and reviews have appeared in a number of publications including Granta, Bookforum, and The Los Angeles Review of Books. She is Advisory Editor for The Hudson Review and co-curator of the Festival Neue Literatur, New York City’s annual festival of German-language literature in English. She currently holds a Berlin Prize Fellowship at the American Academy in Berlin.
Please note: Tickets are limited and need to be booked on our website in advance.
We would like to inform you that all guests must show proof of either a negative Covid-19 lateral flow test (not older than 24 hours), full vaccination status or recent recovery from Covid-19. We ask you also to follow social distancing, wear a mask and sanitise your hands. Please do not visit the ACF if you have Covid symptoms.
