Proust Questionnaire 32: Daniel Kehlmann, Novelist

Dec 30, 2020

Proust Questionnaire 32

Daniel Kehlmann, Novelist

Daniel Kehlmann

Hosted by Uli Baer and Caroline Weber

Summary

Daniel Kehlmann is a German-language novelist and playwright of both Austrian and German nationality. His novel Die Vermessung der Welt (translated into English by Carol Brown Janeway as Measuring the World, 2006) is the best selling book in the German language since Patrick Süskind's Perfume was released in 1985. According to The New York Times, it was the world's second-best selling novel in 2006.

All his subsequent novels reached the number one spot on Germany's Spiegel bestseller list and were translated into English. He collaborated with Jonathan Franzen and Paul Reitter on Franzen's 2013 book The Kraus Project. Kehlmann's play The Mentor, translated by Christopher Hampton, opened at Theatre Royal, Bath, in April 2017 starring F. Murray Abraham and transferred to the London West End in July 2017. In October 2017, his play Christmas Eve, also translated by Christopher Hampton, premiered at the Theatre Royal. His novella You Should Have Left was adapted into a movie starring Kevin Bacon and Amanda Seyfried.

Kehlmann's highly praised novel Tyll, which sold more than 600.000 copies in German alone and was published the US in February 2020, is currently being adapted into a TV series for Netflix by the makers of Dark. The novel was shortlisted for the 2020 International Booker Prize. Kehlmann's play Die Reise der Verlorenen was adapted for BBC radio by Tom Stoppard under the title The Voyage of the St. Louis.

Ulrich Baer is University Professor at New York University where he teaches literature and photography, and writes frequently about photography, art, literature, and other subjects. He is also the host of the podcast “Think About It” and editorial director at Warbler Press. Caroline Weber is a specialist of French literature, history, and culture. She is Professor of French and Comparative Literature at Barnard College and Columbia University in New York City.

Your Host

Uli Baer and Caroline Weber

Ulrich Baer is University Professor at New York University where he teaches literature and photography, and writes frequently about photography, art, literature, and other subjects. He is also the host of the podcast “Think About It” and editorial director at Warbler Press. Twitter: @UliBaer; Intragram. Caroline Weber is a specialist of French literature, history, and culture. She is Professor of French and Comparative Literature at Barnard College and Columbia University in New York City. Twitter: @CorklinedRoom. Instagram.

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