Sebastian Krämer

The idea that, of all times, Christmas is when love among people manifests itself in a
particularly pure form, like a light in the darkness—this notion may
have gone somewhat out of style. But one would be even less inclined to associate this time with
pure evil. Sebastian Krämer, however, does exactly that in his
story “A Light Shines for Us in the Darkness.” Pure malice, as pure as clear
schnapps, reveals itself on what at first seems to be a peaceful Christmas Eve in
the 2000s, under the Christmas tree of the Gryga family in East Westphalia. The reading of the story—which revolves around a childish quarrel between brothers and the cool
light of a flashlight—is repeatedly interrupted by chansons, as
we’ve come to expect from Krämer.