Arnon Grunberg is a celebrated Dutch writer whose work delves into the complexities of human psychology with a provocative and insightful style. He masterfully explores themes of identity, alienation, and the search for meaning in contemporary life, creating intricate narratives that challenge readers. Grunberg is also noted for his experimental approach to literature, frequently employing heteronyms and publishing a diverse range of works from novels to incisive journalistic reports.
Once a literary novelist of some respectability, now brought low by the double insult of obscurity and debt, Robert G. Mehlman is in need of money and recognition - fast. So it is, of course, to cookery writing that he turns.
This novel's protagonist - who also happens to be called Arnon Grunberg - is a man on the run. Expelled from school, uneasy with his family, he spends his days
Brilliant absurdist chronicle of a hapless outsider's struggle to do the right thing. Arnon Grunberg's fourteenth novel charts the downfall of Geniek Janowski, a Polish-German firefighter doing his best to be a good father, husband, lover and colleague, only to fail on all fronts. Geniek leads a seemingly unremarkable life with his wife, Wen, and their son, Jurek, in the sleepy Dutch province of Limburg, where everyone simply calls him "The Pole" because they can't pronounce his real name. He is the only foreigner and the only vegetarian at the fire station, yet to him the crew feels like a band of brothers. When he discovers that the wife of his colleague, Beckers, is dying, The Pole is reminded of the role she played in his own life following the death of his eldest son, Borys--namely, by providing consolation in the form of unorthodox sexual acts. Racked by guilt, The Pole confessed the affair to his wife, and the retreated to a monastery for a year, where he ended up living in the henhouse. On his return, he is allowed to rejoin the fire brigade, though everyone in town has their doubts. Grunberg has lost none of his edge in this acutely absurdist account of the powerlessness of human beings to alter their fate. Comfort, salvation, love, and solidarity seem out of reach. In the world of Good Men, illusions about humanity and, above all, brotherhood will never prevail.
In 2020 vieren we dat het 75 jaar geleden is dat Nederland bevrijd werd en er een einde kwam aan de Tweede Wereldoorlog. Op 4 mei herdenken we hen die gevallen zijn in o.a. die oorlog. Op 5 mei vieren we de vrijheid. Voor 75 jaar Vrijheid schreef Arnon Grunberg de 4 mei-voordracht en koos tien gedichten om op 5 mei stil te staan bij de vrijheid.
The Jewish Messiah is not about Judaism, nor about the Messiah nor about any of the political or historical entities that may be hidden, or referred to, in the book. It is about a young individual, Basel-resident Xavier Radek, grandson of a late SS-member. He needs a mission and, wanting to know more about Jewish suffering, decides to "console the Jews." He converts to Zionism, and falls in love with the Jew Awromele. Xavier's almost fatal circumcision, performed by a half-blind dealer of kosher cheese, is described in some of Grünberg's most hilarious scenes. This book, together with the Van der Jagt works, confirms Grünbergs unique position within Dutch literature. An illustration of the sense of humour employed in the book is the name "King David" given to the testicle Radek lost (during his circumcision), which is worshipped when Radek is PM of Israel. Actual political issues, something Grünberg is not interested in employing in his books in the first place, are merely referred to because they are simply fun to use.
Auf der Suche nach der ›Amour fou‹ begegnet der junge Philosophiestudent Marek van der Jagt in seiner Heimatstadt Wien Andrea und Milena. Er hofft, dass die Touristinnen aus Luxemburg ihn in die Geheimnisse der Liebe einweihen. Mareks Bruder Pavel erlebt eine wunderbare Nacht, doch Marek selbst macht eine frustrierende Entdeckung.
Eine abenteuerliche Reise durch die Gegenwart: Ob auf fremden Sofas beim Couchsurfing, auf Brautschau in der Ukraine, in Guantánamo oder Afghanistan – diese Reportagen führen dorthin, wo wir alleine nie hingekommen wären. Arnon Grünbergs Blick für das absurde Detail stimmt ebenso nachdenklich, wie er erheitert. Die besten Reportagen, ausgewählt von Ilija Trojanow.
Einer zieht aus, das Trösten zu lernen. Und verwandelt sich dabei in einen, der die Menschheit das Fürchten lehrt und dessen Ähnlichkeit mit 'du-weißt-schon-wem' sich nicht leugnen lässt. Eine groteske Farce und ein Angriff auf so ziemlich alle wohlbehüteten Tabus.
