Atemschaukel

The novel tells the story of Leopold Auberg, a seventeen-year-old from Transylvania, who is deported to the labor camp Nowo-Gorlowka in Soviet Ukraine.

The story is deeply rooted in the experiences of German-Romanians during this period and is based on interviews with labor camp survivors, including the poet Oskar Pastior.

The book explores themes of hunger, homesickness, and the psychological impact of such harsh conditions, using powerful metaphors like the 'hunger angel' to describe the relentless suffering.

It is a manifesto of memory and language, highlighting the complex relationship between the two.