Short stories
Die Rückeroberung
Not translated into English
Franz Hohler · 1982
Synopsis
The collection brings together nine stories; the one that gives it its title is set in Zurich. One morning, from his work table, the narrator sees an eagle land on the television aerial of the house opposite. Other birds of prey settle on the rooftops, passers-by find a stag's antlers in a square, then a whole herd crosses the city, and a wolf is said to have been seen. The inhabitants become the astonished spectators of a nature that is taking the city back, street by street.
Context
The volume was published by Luchterhand in 1982. The title story is told in the first person by a married narrator, in a past tense in which great leaps cover several years. The other stories likewise show an everyday life that is cracking apart. Hohler now regards it as a story and a fantasy rather than a prophecy. The collection was reissued in paperback in 2012, by btb.
Who it is for
In German, about a hundred pages. None of the phenomena reported is given an explanation.
Prizes and reception
First winner of the WWF's Grüner Zweig prize, in 1988; a text studied in class in German-speaking countries.
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