Fatou Diome

With her sensational bestseller The Belly of the Ocean, Senegalese author Fatou Diome gave migrants a voice for the first time in 2005. Since then, she has been an important representative of Francophonie, changing our view of Africa, colonialism and racism. Her trademark is her wonderfully vivid language, her humor and her directness. In her latest collection of stories, Was es braucht, das Leben zu lieben (2023), she takes us to a gloomy, cold and wet Strasbourg, where she has lived for over 25 years. The contrast between the rhythm and colorfulness of her language and the bourgeois everyday greyness of the scenes she describes could not be greater. With playful wit, she embarks on a journey between cultures and times, in search of a little happiness and security, because: Imagination must shine to dispel the clouds of everyday life.

Fatou Diome was born in Senegal in 1968. Her bestseller The Belly of the Ocean (2005) about Europe as a dream destination was awarded the Litprom e. V. LiBeraturpreis in Germany.

Language: German / French
Moderation: Barbara von Machui
Translation: Karla Jauregui

In cooperation with the Deutsch-Französischer Kulturkreis (dfk)