Die Welt in ihren Händen

SWR On air
Reading and discussion with Olivier Guez, moderated by Katharina Borchardt

Archaeologist, adventurer, agent of the British Empire: Gertrude Bell was closely associated with Lawrence of Arabia, a confidante of Winston Churchill and the only woman among the powerful men of Mesopotamia; the misunderstood daughter of a wealthy Victorian family loved this region and wanted to bring peace to it. She lost her mother at an early age, fought against her father's expectations and suffered a tragic love affair. On two levels, Olivier Guez tells the story of the origins of today's conflict region in an atmospherically dense and historically adept manner and creates a monument to the unjustly forgotten. Nicola Denis has translated the novel into German. Guez, born in Strasbourg in 1974, is an award-winning writer and journalist. He works for Le Monde, the New York Times and Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung, among others. He received the German Film Award for his screenplay "Der Staat gegen Fritz Bauer". His novel "The Disappearance of Josef Mengele" became an international bestseller. Olivier Guez lives in Rome.

A cooperation between Literaturhaus Stuttgart, Institut français and SWR Kultur, as part of the 22nd French Weeks