At the Frankfurt Book Fair, authors spontaneously read excerpts from the novel “A Minor Matter” by Palestinian author Adania Shibli. With the event, which was postponed at the last minute, PEN Berlin wanted to “give a stage” to the novel that has been talked about so much, as Deniz Yücel, one of the two speakers at the writers’ association, said. Jewish authors were also among the speakers.
Co-speaker Eva Menasse read a greeting from the writer: “From my sad silence, I thank you, you and the audience. This donation confirms to me that literature is a lifeline for many of us.” In addition to Menasse, Deborah Feldman (“Unorthodox”), Tomer Dotan Dreyfus (“Birobidzhan”), Sasha Marianna Salzmann (“Außer sich”), Julia Franck (“Die Mittagsfrau”) and Dana Vowinckel (“Waters in the Ziplock”) ) to read.
In fact, Shibli was supposed to receive the Litprom Association’s “Liberaturpreis” at Friday’s trade fair, an award for authors from the Global South. However, the book fair postponed the awards ceremony to a later date, at short notice. The novel received critical acclaim, but was also criticized for alleged anti-Semitic clichés. The novel concerns the rape and mass murder of a young Bedouin girl by Israeli soldiers in 1949.
PEN Berlin criticizes the postponement. “No book will be different, better, worse or more dangerous because the news situation changes,” Menasse said before the fair. Salman Rushdie, who will be honored with the German book trade’s Peace Prize on Sunday, said on Friday that he hopes “postponement” is not a euphemism for “cancellation” and that the honor will be rescheduled soon.