Schulz, Hermann

German > Teenagers	<<     >>

Hermann Schulz was born in 1938 in Tanzania. He has travelled extensively in the Near East, in Africa and in Latin America, and has written books on Brazil and Nicaragua. He has been publisher of Peter Hammer Verlag since 1967, and has built up a notable list of African authors. In 1998 he was awarded the Hermann Kesten Medal by the German PEN Club for his work in assisting writers persecuted in their own countries.

Translated into Japanese and French.

• Titles

Iskender. – München : Piper, 2004. – 231 S.
ISBN 3-492-23134-9. – ca. EUR 7,90

• Review

The young illegitimate son of a Turkish worker and a German waitress has lived in an orphanage since his mother died. There he is found by his father, when he searches for his former girlfriend. He abducts the severely retarded boy to Turkey, to his home village, where the boy begins to flourish in the loving care of his grandparents and the rural surroundings. But the German bureaucracy demands to have the boy returned to Germany because there is no clear proof of paternity. Only through the decisive initiative of a young woman can the extradition be avoided. Based on an authentic case, this literary rendering depicts a wealth of ordinary difficulties that Turkish workers have in and with Germany and the disastrous situation of those who do not have enough influence to maintain their own rights. (14+)
(White Ravens, 2000)

Flucht durch den Winter. – Hamburg : Carlsen, 2002. – 144 S.
ISBN 3-551-58096-0. – ca. EUR 13,00

• Review

During the last months of World War II, 14-year-old Ännchen Schwalbe lives with farmers in North Germany. The forced labourers who had been brought to Germany from countries occupied by the Germans are to be transported to a death camp soon. The girl takes pity on Sergej, a young Russian, and decides to escape with him. During their odyssey, the young people witness the terrible end of the war and its ravages. They even kill in order not to be killed. In April 1945, they are both rescued by the Allied Forces. This gripping realistic novel, which is based on authentic tales of people involved, convinces through the absence of sentimentality and pathos. Still, the readers can experience the horrible events very closely. (14+) (White Ravens, 2003) Flucht durch den Winter During the last months of World War II, 14-year-old Ännchen Schwalbe lives with farmers in North Germany. The forced labourers who had been brought to Germany from countries occupied by the Germans are to be transported to a death camp soon. The girl takes pity on Sergej, a young Russian, and decides to escape with him. During their odyssey, the young people witness the terrible end of the war and its ravages. They even kill in order not to be killed. In April 1945, they are both rescued by the Allied Forces. This gripping realistic novel, which is based on authentic tales of people involved, convinces through the absence of sentimentality and pathos. Still, the readers can experience the horrible events very closely. (14+)
(White Ravens, 2003)

Sonnennebel. – Hamburg : Carlsen, 2000. – 232 S.
ISBN 3-551-58064-2. – ca. EUR 15,00

• Review

This novel is set in the 1950s. Accordingly, people live a very frugal life in a small provincial town in the industrial region on the Ruhr. More or less legally, 15-year-old Freddy tries to make a little money and repeatedly comes into conflict with the police without however ever really turning criminal. When he meets his first love, all problems are overcome including the social difference between him and Cornelia and the soon following break-up. The reader retains the hope that both will find their own way. Both tone and language are refreshingly vivid, the narration full of subdued humour. This is an authentic retrospective on the problems facing German adolescents after World War II. (12+)
(White Ravens, 2001)

Wenn dich ein Löwe nach der Uhrzeit fragt. Eine Afrikageschichte. – Wuppertal : Hammer, 2002. – 128 S.
ISBN 3-87294-912-8. – ca. EUR 11,00

• Review

Der deutsche Geologe Egon Friedrich Kirschstein lebte und arbeitete Mitte des 20. Jahrhunderts in Zentralafrika, war mit einer Schwarzen verheiratet und hatte mit ihr 7 Kinder. Basierend auf den Berichten von Kirschsteins Kindern lässt H. Schulz (zuletzt BA 8/00; BA 11/00) den (fiktiven) 11-jährigen Sohn Thomas als Ich-Erzähler Episoden aus dem Leben des Vaters und auch aus dem eigenen Kinderleben schildern. Das Ergebnis ist keineswegs eine Forscher-Biografie (hier könnte z.B. das Nachwort etwas mehr an Informationen bieten), sondern eine Hommage an einen ungewöhnlichen Mann und ein sehr gelungener, weil flott, lebendig und mit Humor erzählter Einblick in afrikanisches Leben. – Gern für viele Bibliotheken
(ekz) Elisabeth Mair-Gummermann

Dem König klaut man nicht das Affenfell. – Wuppertal : Hammer, 2003. – 127 S.
ISBN 3-87294-942-X. – ca. EUR 11,00

• Review

Nach dem Tod des Vaters (vgl. “Wenn dich ein Löwe nach der Uhrzeit fragt” nominiert für den Deutschen Jugendliteraturpreis; BA 10/02) sind für die Familie Kirchstein in Tansania neue Verdienstmöglichkeiten gefragt. Der Bruder des 12-jährigen Protagonisten arbeitet als Führer im Serengeti Nationalpark. Bei der Planung wurde eine Reisegruppe vergessen und kurzerhand muss Temeo einspringen und eine perfekt organisierte Inselabenteuerreise auf den Viktoriasee vortäuschen. Als Höhepunkt soll die Auferstehung eines legendären Königs inszeniert werden. Der Coup jedoch gewinnt fantastische Eigendynamik und überrascht damit die Helden selbst. Schulz ist bemüht, Legenden, Historie und eine frische Jungenfreundschaft jenseits von Mitleidspathos zu verbinden. Der Ton ist stimmig, der Ich-Erzähler liebenswert und witzige Einzelepisoden erfreuen. Mitunter jedoch sticht die geschichtsaufklärende Absicht zu deutlich heraus. Die Qualität des 1. Bandes wurde nicht erreicht. Dennoch als Fortsetzung gern empfohlen
(ekz) Robert Elstner

German > Teenagers	<<     >>