Lesung
A Very Special Year
A Very Special Year by Thomas Montasser tells the story of the young businesswoman, Valerie taking over the bookshop owned by her aunt — who has vanished without trace. Her intention is to bring some order to the chaos, and sell the business. But she has underestimated the power of this little store. As she spends her days in an old armchair, losing herself in books by Italo Calvino and Gustav Flaubert as well as Jonathan Safran Foer and Shahriar Mandanipour, she finds herself in thrall to the life of a bookseller — including the resident bookstore rat and the chaotic shelving system.
One day she stumbles upon a mysterious book with an unfinished ending. Valerie thinks it must be a defective copy, but when a customer turns up searching for that very book, her view of the shop – and world – is never the same.
Excerpts from the novel will be read both in English and German.
Details
Goethe-Institut Nairobi
No. 3, Monrovia Street
Maendeleo House
Nairobi
Price: Free
Library