While We Were Dreaming Als Wir Trumten Clemens Meyer Katy Derbyshire Translation by Clemens Meyer, Katy Derbyshire (translation) 9781804270288, 1804270288 instant download after payment.

Startlingly raw and deeply moving, this extraordinary debut novel from one of Germany’s most ambitious writers is full of passion, hope and despair. 

"A well-balanced story poised between serious reality and romantic ideals."  -  Kirkus Reviews

Rico, Mark, Paul and Daniel were 13 when the Berlin Wall fell in autumn 1989. Growing up in Leipzig at the time of reunification, they dream of a better life somewhere beyond the brewery quarter. Every night they roam the streets, partying, rioting, running away from their fears, their parents and the future, fighting to exist, killing time. They drink, steal cars, feel wrecked, play it cool, longing for real love and true freedom. 

"Energetic, blunt and hard-charging, While We Were Dreaming skilfully captures with pathos and anger the sense of what happens when all the certainties of the grown-up world evaporate and the future is up for grabs."  -  The International Booker Prize 2023 Panel Of Judges

Clemens Meyer studied creative writing at the German Literary Institute, Leipzig and was granted a scholarship by the Saxon Ministry of Science and Arts in 2002. His first novel, Als wir träumten [While We Were Dreaming], was a huge success in Germany. His second book, Die Nacht, die Lichter [All the Lights], a collection of short stories, was awarded the Leipzig Book Fair Prize 2008. Bricks and Mortar was shortlisted for the German Book Prize, longlisted for the Man Booker International Prize 2017 and was awarded the Bremer Literaturpreis 2014.