German Jewish Literature After 1990

The 1990 reunification of Germany gave rise to a new generation of writers who write in German, identify as both German and Jewish, and often also sustain cultural affiliations with places such as Russia, Azerbaijan, or Israel. This edited volume traces the development of this new literature into the present, offers fresh interpretations of individual works, and probes the very concept of "German Jewish literature." A central theme is the transformation of memory at a time when the Holocaust is moving into greater historical distance while the influx of new immigrant groups to Germany brings other past trauma into view. The volume's ten original essays by scholars from Europe and the U.S. reframe the debates about Holocaust memory and contemporary German culture. The concluding interviews with authors Mirna Funk and Olga Grjasnowa offer a glimpse into the future of German Jewish literature.

Contributors: Luisa Banki, Caspar Battegay, Helen Finch, Mirna Funk, Katja Garloff, Olga Grjasnowa, Elizabeth Loentz, Andree Michaelis-König, Agnes Mueller, Jessica Ortner, Jonathan Skolnik, Stuart Taberner.

Katja Garloff is Professor of German and Humanities at Reed College. Agnes Mueller is the College of Arts & Sciences Distinguished Professor of the Humanities at the University of South Carolina.