German Book Prize (Deutscher Buchpreis)
1 appearances
-
Edition 8 (2012) Winner
Ursula Krechel
ウルズラ・クレッチェル
Ursula Krechel
Profile
- Gender
- Female
- Born
- 1947-12-04 （Trier, Germany）
- Nationality
- Germany
- Languages
- German
- Residence History
- Cologne (studies) → Dortmund (worked as dramaturge) → Frankfurt am Main (long-term residence) → Berlin (since 2000, working as a writer)
Career
- Occupations
- writer, poet, playwright, dramaturge, radio dramatist
- Active Years
- 1969-
- Affiliations
- Academy of Arts, Berlin (Akademie der Künste), German Academy for Language and Literature (Deutsche Akademie für Sprache und Dichtung), Academy of Sciences and Literature, Mainz (vice-president), PEN Centre Germany (honorary president)
- Memberships
- Member of the Academy of Arts, Berlin, Member of the German Academy for Language and Literature
Education
| Institution | Faculty | Department | Degree | Period | Country |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| University of Cologne | German studies, Theatre, Art history | — | PhD | 1966–1972 | Germany |
University of Cologne
German studies, Theatre, Art history
Degree:
PhD
Period:
1966–1972
Year of Graduation:
1972
Country:
Germany
PhD awarded in 1972 (Information und Wertung)
Awards
| Year | Award | Work | Category | Organization | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980 | Arbeitsstipendium for Berlin artists | — | — | — | 受賞 |
| 1994 | Internationaler Eifel Literature Prize | — | — | — | 受賞 |
| 1994 | Martha Saalfeld Promotion Prize | — | — | — | 受賞 |
| 1997 | Elisabeth Langgässer Literature Prize | — | — | — | 受賞 |
| 2006 | Calwer Hermann-Hesse Stipend/Prize | — | — | — | 受賞 |
| 2008 | Rheingau Literature Prize | Shanghai fern von wo | — | — | 受賞 |
| 2009 | Jeanette Schocken Prize – Bremerhaven Citizens' Prize for Literature | — | — | — | 受賞 |
| 2009 | German Critics' Prize | — | — | — | 受賞 |
| 2009 | Joseph Breitbach Prize | — | — | — | 受賞 |
| 2009 | Art Prize Rhineland-Palatinate | — | — | Rhineland-Palatinate (state) | 受賞 |
| 2012 | Orphil (Wiesbaden Poetry Prize) | — | — | — | 受賞 |
| 2012 | German Book Prize | Landgericht | — | German Book Prize | 受賞 |
| 2019 | Jean Paul Prize | — | — | — | 受賞（生涯業績） |
| 2025 | Georg Büchner Prize | — | — | German Academy for Language and Literature, etc. | 受賞 |
Arbeitsstipendium for Berlin artists
1980
Result:
受賞
Internationaler Eifel Literature Prize
1994
Result:
受賞
Martha Saalfeld Promotion Prize
1994
Result:
受賞
Elisabeth Langgässer Literature Prize
1997
Result:
受賞
Calwer Hermann-Hesse Stipend/Prize
2006
Result:
受賞
Rheingau Literature Prize
2008
Work:
Shanghai fern von wo
Result:
受賞
Jeanette Schocken Prize – Bremerhaven Citizens' Prize for Literature
2009
Result:
受賞
German Critics' Prize
2009
Result:
受賞
Joseph Breitbach Prize
2009
Result:
受賞
Art Prize Rhineland-Palatinate
2009
Organization:
Rhineland-Palatinate (state)
Result:
受賞
Orphil (Wiesbaden Poetry Prize)
2012
Result:
受賞
German Book Prize
2012
Work:
Landgericht
Organization:
German Book Prize
Result:
受賞
Jean Paul Prize
2019
Result:
受賞（生涯業績）
Georg Büchner Prize
2025
Organization:
German Academy for Language and Literature, etc.
Result:
受賞
Awards & Nominations
Works
Major Works
Landgericht
2012 Novel (hybrid genre)A hybrid novel dealing with a family's history and memory spanning Germany and Cuba. It confronts post-war German forgetfulness, interweaving personal biography and court records to portray the fate of a family.
memoryfamily historypost-war Germanyexilelaw and testimony
Adaptations
- [TV film] Landgericht – The Story of a Family (2017)
- [Audiobook] Landgericht (audiobook) (2014)
Jäh erhellte Dunkelheit
2010 PoetryA collection of more recent poems characterized by precise language and deep emotional exploration.
language and expressioninner landscapesmemory
Shanghai fern von wo
2008 NovelA novel addressing relations and distances to foreign places, where personal memories intersect with historical facts.
othernessmemorymovement
Bibliography
- Umsturz (1977)
- Nach Mainz! (1977)
- Verwundbar wie in den besten Zeiten (1979)
- Zweite Natur (1981)
- Rohschnitt (1983)
- Landläufiges Wunder (1995)
- Shanghai fern von wo (2008)
- Landgericht (2012)
- Geisterbahn (2018)
Adaptations
- TV film adaptation of Landgericht (ZDF, 2017) and audiobook (2014)
Style & Themes
- Literary Style
- lyrichybrid (genre-blending)documentary/ montage techniques
- Recurring Motifs
- memory and forgettingfamily historyexile and displacementsilence and testimonylaw and records
Legacy
Ursula Krechel has left a significant mark on post-war German literature across poetry, novels, plays and criticism. She has been widely honored — notably the German Book Prize (2012), Jean Paul Prize (2019), and Georg Büchner Prize (2025). Her archive at the Academy of Arts, Berlin, is an important resource for scholarship.
Museums
- Academy of Arts, Berlin (Ursula Krechel archive) Berlin, Germany
Academic Societies
- Academy of Arts, Berlin
- German Academy for Language and Literature
- Academy of Sciences and Literature, Mainz
- PEN Centre Germany (honorary president)
Archives
- Ursula Krechel archive held by the Academy of Arts, Berlin (publications, manuscripts, correspondence)
Trivia
- Since 2000 she has been based in Berlin as a writer.
- Won the German Book Prize in 2012 for Landgericht.
- Became Honorary President of PEN Centre Germany in 2020.
- Awarded the Georg Büchner Prize in 2025.