Strubel, Antje Rávic. Unter Schnee (Frankfurt: Fischer, 2001)

Strubel is one of my all time favourites. Her novels probe issues of gender diversity and sexuality that go beyond binaries of male/female or gay/straight. This episodic novel could be placed alongside Ingo Schulze’s Simple Storys to discuss the influence of the short story form, or it could be placed along other novels that explore post-reunification uses of East German space. The language is clear, even sparse at times, and I have used it in translation exercises as well as literature classes. Also available in translation as Snowed Under (Los Angeles: Red Hen, 2008).