Endlose Tage am Point Zero

Ranked 1st on the 63rd Litprom Best List "Weltempfänger" for Summer 2024. Nominated for the LiBeraturpreis 2025. The short stories in this collection originate from two narrative volumes published by Stella Gaitano in Arabic in 2004 and 2015, that is, in the years before and after South Sudan's independence from Sudan in 2011. Several stories reflect the painful separation of the two countries. Some stories, such as "Departure to Kosti" or "The Return," address the deportation of South Sudanese from Sudan, while another, "Fleeing from the Monthly Salary," deals with the disillusionment surrounding the hard-won independence. Sometimes, as in the story "The Smell of Hard Work," where Stella Gaitano depicts the reactions of a diverse group of bus passengers to the news of the death of South Sudanese rebel leader John Garang, she references a specific event. However, most narratives portray everyday life in cities, such as "Mama, I'm Scared," or in rural areas, like "The Curse." This creates a diverse mosaic of (South) Sudanese realities. The focus is on people who bear the burdens of existence while never losing their dignity. The stories are united by the author's compassionate gaze upon her protagonists, to whom she pays tribute in powerful and poetic imagery. This is especially true for the award-winning story "Breasts as Big as Papayas" and the tale "Maps of Unknown Worlds," in which two orphaned children, reliant on one another, may argue but ultimately share a bond of sibling care.