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Pick of the month

Here, we shall present media from our library on a monthly basis. Either a book about a current issue, a musical or literary highlight on CD or an interesting film. You are welcome to visit us to browse through our collection of English and German media or to take out books, magazines, CDs or DVDs. The „pick of the month” will also be included in our monthly newsletter.

    June 2012

    Auma Obama: And Then Life Happens

    Even before landing in Germany in 1980, the then 19-year Auma Obama noticed the neatly divided landscape from her seat in the plane, the cities seemingly like “a compact whole, systematic and accurate”. It is in Germany where Kenyan-born Auma Obama, half-sister to Barack Obama, begins her studies and goes in search of her African identity. It is this theme of living between different cultures which characterises her autobiography.More ...

    May 2012

    Shoe Shop

    Shoe Shop is an anthology and an experiment in imagining different paths, speaking in different tongues – on Africa, movement, public art, migration, beauty: considering an innate humanity. The book has been shaped to create a space for transformation and fluidity, for care, and for the sole pleasure of movement. It aims to create a critical and thoughtful space to consider film, photography and literature related to migration on the African continent.More ...

    April 2012

    Der Besuch

    After many years of absence (and eight marriages) Carla Zachanassian returns to her hometown, Güllen, as an immensely wealthy woman. The mayor of the town is plagued by financial worries and has great hopes that, as a daughter of Güllen, the rich Mrs. Zachanassian will help the struggling town. Mrs. Zachanassian (played by Ingrid Bergman), however, has not forgotten why she left the small town many years ago.More ...

    March 2012

    The Hour of the Jackal

    Beginning in the wealthy Windhoek suburb of Ludwigsdorf, a series of brutal murders occurs in Namibia. It soon becomes apparent that the link connecting these murders lies somewhere in the past. Evidently, old scores are being settled in this case. The young investigating police officer, Clemencia Garises, must fight against time – and against a murderer who always seems to be one step ahead of the law enforcement. In addition, Clemencia’s investigations are soon met with a harsh headwind.More ...

    February 2012

    Emmas Glück

    Emma, a pig breeder, lives by herself on the run-down and hopelessly indebted farm of her family. She treats her pigs lovingly to the last day, and then slaughters them in her own, tender way.More ...

    January 2012

    Cicero

    On 1 January 2002, the Euro was introduced in 17 European member states and replaced the national currencies as the only valid means of payment. By implementing a common currency, the EU member states not only hoped to increase trade and economic cooperation between the members of the Euro zone; but also viewed the Euro as a means through which to establish a European domestic market (Single European Market).More ...

    December 2011

    Alles Weihnachten!
    Geschichten zum Fest.

    For many people, rather than living up to the traditional notions of a season of peace and harmony, Christmas time seems to be a season of stress and worry! Many people find themselves racing through overcrowded shops and between trolleys and complaining about the never-ending array of Boney M songs, all of which act as reminders, like a looming shadow, that Christmas Day is moving ever-closer. From one Christmas stall to the next, everyone seems to be looking for an appropriate present and is always pressed for time.More ...

    November 2011

    Klima. Kultur. Wandel.

    With its six full-length feature films and seven short films, the film series Klima. Kultur. Wandel. (Climate. Culture. Change.) embraces a broad spectrum of current phenomena related to climate change and their socio-cultural impacts. Ranging from causes to solutions, from the individual to the societal, and from the local to the global level, this collection of films covers a multitude of facets pertaining to climate change.More ...

    October 2011

    Rabenliebe

    “It was a deep grey day that I remember as being the first day of my life. A featureless day that seemed to become a nice day but then clouded over.“ It is not only the day that is described here by Peter Wawerzinek; it is his own life. A life that could have become beautiful and bright yet became as black as a crow instead.More ...

    September 2011

    Jacob, the Liar. A film by Frank Beyer. GDR/ČSSR 1974

    In his 1975 film Jacob, the Liar (nominated for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film), Frank Beyer tells the story of Jacob, a man who allegedly violates the curfew in an Eastern European Jewish ghetto - a transgression punishable by death. Taken to the police station, where he is to receive his penalty, Jacob overhears a radio broadcast reporting about the approach of the Red Army.More ...

    August 2011

    Muslim Girls. Wer wir sind, wie wir leben

    It’s been almost a year since Thilo Sarrazin, former executive board member of the German Central Bank, caused a great stir with his slogans concerning immigrants allegedly unwilling to integrate into German society. During the same time, Sineb El Masrars book “Muslim Girls. Wer wir sind, wie wir leben” (Muslim Girls. Who we are, how we live) was published – and offered an urgently required counter statement to Sarrazins racist polemics.More ...

    July 2011

    Marie hat jetzt Stachelzöpfe

    A large picture in the middle of this children’s book shows two children lying on a round patch of grass that symbolises the world: a boy with his head towards Europe and a girl with her head towards Africa – two regions in the world that complement one another. The book contains two stories in one. Marie, whose mother comes from Burkina Faso, visits her native country and gets to know a completely new world.More ...

    June 2011

    Der Kick des Lebens

    Steffi Jones is one of Germany’s most famous female soccer players. With this book, she has presented an early yet impressive autobiography. Jones speaks very openly and honestly about her childhood in the deprived neighbourhood of Frankfurt, the excessive demands on her single mother, her brother’s regression into crime and drug addiction – as well as about her own salvation through the discovery of soccer.More ...

    May 2011

    The top 100 “Schlager” of the Century

    Songs such as Ein bisschen Frieden (A little peace), 99 Luftballons (99 Red Balloons) or Griechischer Wein (Greek wine) are familiar to almost all Germans: they are cemented into the collective memory of several generations. From the seemingly inexhaustible supply of German “Schlager” (traditional German-language pop songs), a jury consisting of prominent experts and hit-makers has selected one hundred of the most successful and famous titles.More ...

    April 2011

    The Endless City

    At the turn of the twenty-first century, the world is faced with an unprecedented challenge. It must address a fundamental shift in the world’s population towards cities, and away from mankind’s rural roots. Today, for the first time in history, more than half of the global population resides in urban areas – a number projected to reach 75% by 2050 - up from a mere 10% in 1900.More ...

    March 2011

    Folkwang Meets Africa

    At the beginning of 2006 Henrietta Horn, artistic director of Folkwang Tanzstudio, joined forces with dancers from Cameroon to create a dance performance for the Yaoundé dance festival “Abok i Ngoma”. International dance trends have yet to make their mark in this part of Africa: an exciting scenario and fertile ground for both the choreographer and the film, which documents this process of intercultural exchange.More ...

    February 2011

    Südafrika und Deutschland

    Searching for common traces - the subtitle of Heinz Gustaffson’s book is a reflection of his extensive research. 27 chapters present South Africa’s history and South African – German relations until 2009, from the first European expeditions, colonialisation, the Apartheid era, up to liberation and the first free elections in 1994.More ...

    January 2011

    "In Deutschland angekommen..."

    „I packed my bags and left, without crying.”
    Since decades, Germany has been a country of immigration for people from various origins and different circumstances.
    In this book, men and women of all ages and from various backgrounds tell, how and when they came to Germany, how they were received, how they experienced and still experience the country and its people, i.e. how they “arrived”.More ...

    December 2010

    The Collector of Worlds

    The holidays are around the corner – have you found a good read yet? How about a gripping travel novel? Ilija Trojanow, born in Bulgaria, is at home in many countries and on various continents. He grew up in Germany and Kenya, studied in Munich and lived, amongst others, in Bombay and Cape Town.
    The multi-awarded author takes us into several exotic worlds. He follows the historical figure of Richard Francis Burton, who collected ‘worlds’ in the 19th century, like others collected stamps.More ...

    November 2010

    Schadeberg Schwarz – Weiß

    The film “Schadeberg Schwarz Weiß” presents the life and work of German-South African photographer Jürgen Schadeberg. He is considered as one of the most important photographers of today, who dedicated over half a century to documentary photography.More ...