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Antje Rávik Strubel

アンチェ・ラーヴィク・シュトルーベ

Antje Rávik Strubel

Aliases: Antje Rávic Strubel
Pen Names: Rávik（Spelling used in earlier publications; added to her legal name to designate her writing identity.）

Profile

Gender
Female
Born
1974-04-12 （Potsdam, East Germany）
Nationality
Germany
Languages
German, English, Swedish
Residence History
Potsdam (birthplace and current residence) → Ludwigsfelde (grew up) → New York (study/work period)

Career

Occupations
Writer, Translator, Literary critic
Active Years
2001-
Nominations
Leipzig Book Prize (shortlisted) 2007, German Book Prize (nominated) 2012

Education

University of Potsdam
Studied literature, psychology and American studies
Country: Germany
Studied literature, psychology and American studies in Potsdam
Institution(s) in New York (unspecified)
Country: United States
Studied in New York and worked as a lighting assistant in a theater (details unspecified)

Awards

Ernst Willner Prize
2001
Organization: Organization of the Klagenfurt literature festival
Result: 受賞
Roswitha Prize
2003
Organization: Roswitha Prize committee
Result: 受賞
German Critics Prize
2003
Organization: German critics' organizations
Result: 受賞
Marburger Literature Prize
2005
Work: Tupolew 134
Organization: Marburger Literature Prize committee
Result: 受賞
Bremen Literature Prize
2005
Work: Tupolew 134
Organization: Bremen Literature Prize committee
Result: 受賞
Hermann Hesse Prize
2007
Work: Kältere Schichten der Luft
Organization: Hermann Hesse Prize committee
Result: 受賞
Rheingau Literatur Preis
2007
Work: Kältere Schichten der Luft
Organization: Rheingau Literatur Prize committee
Result: 受賞
German Book Prize
2021
Work: Blaue Frau
Organization: German Book Prize committee
Result: 受賞

Awards & Nominations

Works

Major Works

Offene Blende

2001 Novel

Debut novel exploring characters' identity and transformation.

identitytransformationmobility

Unter Schnee (Snowed Under)

2001 Episodic novel

Follows characters from East Germany who, through experiences abroad, question gender and belonging; features a lesbian couple and ambiguous gender representations.

gendernationality and belongingmemory
Translations
  • Snowed Under (translated into English by Zaia Alexander)

Tupolew 134

2004 Novel (based on historical event)

Based on the 1977 Aeroflot Tu-134 hijacking; examines memory and the political repercussions of East German history.

historymemorypolitical repercussions

Kältere Schichten der Luft

2007 Novel

Experimentally narrated novel addressing gender and selfhood; features a female protagonist who develops a male alter ego.

genderselfhoodmemory

Sturz der Tage in die Nacht (When Days Plunge into Night)

2012 Novel

A long novel probing East German memory and personal/historical trauma; was nominated for the German Book Prize in 2012.

memorytraumahistory

Into the Forests of the Human Heart

2016 Episodic novel

An episodic novel including transgender characters; engages with gender theory and processes of self-transformation.

transgendertransformationidentity

Blaue Frau (Blue Woman)

2021 Novel

A complex love story set in modern Europe; winner of the German Book Prize in 2021.

loverelationshipscontemporary Europe

Bibliography

  • Offene Blende (2001)
  • Unter Schnee (2001)
  • Fremd Gehen (2002)
  • Tupolew 134 (2004)
  • Kältere Schichten der Luft (2007)
  • Vom Dorf (2007)
  • Gebrauchsanweisung für Schweden (2008)
  • Sturz der Tage in die Nacht (2012)
  • In den Wäldern des menschlichen Herzens (2016)
  • Gebrauchsanweisung fürs Skifahren (2016)
  • Blaue Frau (2021)

Translations by Author

  • German translations of Joan Didion's works (e.g. The Year of Magical Thinking)
  • Translation of Favel Parrett's Past the Shallows
  • Selected stories by Lucia Berlin (translated into German)
  • Translations of Karolina Ramqvist's fiction

Translations of Works

  • Unter Schnee → Snowed Under (English translation by Zaia Alexander)

Style & Themes

Literary Style
experimental narrationfragmentary/episodic structuremanipulation of memory and perspective
Recurring Motifs
memorytransforming identitiestravel and mobilitygender/sexual diversity

Legacy

Recognized as a leading writer from the generation born in East Germany, Strubel is praised for works addressing memory, identity and gender representation. She has received multiple literary prizes and works as a translator; winning the German Book Prize in 2021 for Blaue Frau brought significant international attention.

Quotes

  • Memory is always a story.
    Source: Interview by Beret Norman & Katie Sutton, Women in German Yearbook (2012) (2012)

Trivia

  • Added the writing name Rávik to her legal name at the time of her debut (previously Rávic).
  • Worked as a bookseller in Potsdam early in her career.
  • Worked as a lighting assistant in a theatre in New York.
  • Has translated works by Joan Didion, Lucia Berlin and Karolina Ramqvist into German.