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Lutz Seiler, winner of the English PEN Award and German Book Prize, brings a tumultuous debut novel to an English-speaking audience. Set on a bohemian Baltic coastal island, this novel of a cult of personality during the last days of the Soviet occupation of the GDR grips readers just as Kruso's charisma grips our protagonist. --World Literature Today An important work...in its chronicling of the final days of communism in East Germany...Excellent translation. --Adrian Tahourdin Times Literary Supplement Seiler delivers a debut novel with which he manages to catapult himself into the front rank of this country's authors. --Die Zeit Seiler's novel is lyrical and powerful in its eloquence. Already he is to be counted among the great contemporary German literary figures. --WDR 5 The poetic language and careful expression to the prose in Kruso make for an arresting read too, slightly odd and off-beat, but quite compelling. It's also a novel of big themes--freedom (personal and political), longing (in all its gradations), and mourning, in particular--and the narrative's general sense of drift, with these bobbling up constantly but never overwhelming the story, is particularly well done. A fine, big novel. --M.A. Orthofer The Complete Review A special book that will endure. --Frankfurter Rundschau An outstanding debut novel...Beautifully phrased and paced, Tess Lewis's translation delights on every page as she conveys the contagious sense of liberation that blows through Mr Seiler's mesmeric novel. --The Economist Seiler's novel Kruso shows what German literature can accomplish when it's fully worked. --Welt am Sonntag A multi-layered philosophical novel that poses a major question to us and to our time: How is freedom possible? --Die Zeit A sublime book that is far more than just the novel of the year. --Deutschlandradio Kultur Kruso [is] the first worthy successor to Thomas Mann's Magic Mountain to appear in contemporary German literature. --Der Spiegel This novel has historical-philosophical dimensions: it is a significant contemplation on different forms of freedom as well as a wonderfully poetic exaltation of a concrete historical event--a truly great book. --3sat Kulturzeit An enigmatic Bildungsroman, adapting the literary trope of the island refuge to the dying days of East German socialism...English readers can delight in this prizewinning translation from Tess Lewis, which renders Seiler's vision in prose of startling clarity. --The Saturday Age Lutz Seiler's writings trace their roots to Uwe Johnson's poetry and reflect the German past, present and future beyond the surface of simple truths.. .In Kruso, Lutz Seiler visualises the hopes and constraints of a whole country by means of one singular place, Hiddensee, during one short period of time, June to November 1989. --from the statement of the Uwe-Johnson-Prize 2014 jury That rare treasure--a great novel. --Potsdamer Neueste Nachrichten If communism's final moments are an island of time, Kruso is a bottled message washed up from those distant shores. A strange journey, Seiler's novel subscribes to island rules, with historicity suspended above and between fevered dreams of perfect community and beguiling freedom. --Letitia Montgomery-Rodgers Foreword Reviews A seamless English translation by Tess Lewis...Readers might doubt whether Robinson Crusoe can work in a German setting--they might even feel affronted that it's been attempted--but Seiler's novel springs from his own experience in a way that underlines the universality of the tale. --Newsweek [A]n exciting, expansive work of German literature; it may well prove one of the major novels of the 21st century. --Eileen Battersby The Irish Times This novel set in the historic summer of 1989 is a lighthouse, not an ivory tower. --S ddeutsche Zeitung

"""Lutz Seiler employs lyrical, sensual language with a hint of magic to describe the summer of 1989 on the island of Hiddensee -- a 'gateway to evanescence' ... One can read this compelling Robinsonade involving the eponymous Kruso and the young dishwasher Edgar as an eloquent tale of both a personal and historic shipwreck -- and as a poet's coming of age novel ... Lutz Seiler's first novel impresses with its thoroughly distinct poetic language, its sensual intensity and its worldliness."" --Jury comments from the 2014 German Book Prize ""If communism's final moments are an island of time, Kruso is a bottled message washed up from those distant shores. A strange journey, Seiler's novel subscribes to island rules, with historicity suspended above and between fevered dreams of perfect community and beguiling freedom."" --Letitia Montgomery-Rodgers, Foreword Reviews ""An outstanding debut novel...Beautifully phrased and paced, Tess Lewis's translation delights on every page as she conveys ""the contagious sense of liberation"" that blows through Mr Seiler's mesmeric novel."" --The Economist ""[A]n exciting, expansive work of German literature; it may well prove one of the major novels of the 21st century."" --Eileen Battersby, The Irish Times ""A seamless English translation by Tess Lewis...Readers might doubt whether Robinson Crusoe can work in a German setting--they might even feel affronted that it's been attempted--but Seiler's novel springs from his own experience in a way that underlines the universality of the tale."" --Newsweek ""An enigmatic Bildungsroman, adapting the literary trope of the island refuge to the dying days of East German socialism...English readers can delight in this prizewinning translation from Tess Lewis, which renders Seiler's vision in prose of startling clarity."" --The Saturday Age ""Kruso [is] the first worthy successor to Thomas Mann's Magic Mountain to appear in contemporary German literature."" --Der Spiegel ""This novel set in the historic summer of 1989 is a lighthouse, not an ivory tower."" --Süddeutsche Zeitung ""Seiler's novel Kruso shows what German literature can accomplish when it's fully worked."" --Welt am Sonntag ""That rare treasure--a great novel."" --Potsdamer Neueste Nachrichten ""A multi-layered philosophical novel that poses a major question to us and to our time: How is freedom possible?"" --Die Zeit ""Lutz Seiler's writings trace their roots to Uwe Johnson's poetry and reflect the German past, present and future beyond the surface of ""simple truths""...In Kruso, Lutz Seiler visualises the hopes and constraints of a whole country by means of one singular place, Hiddensee, during one short period of time, June to November 1989."" --from the statement of the Uwe-Johnson-Prize 2014 jury ""Seiler delivers a debut novel with which he manages to catapult himself into the front rank of this country's authors."" Die Zeit ""A special book that will endure."" --Frankfurter Rundschau ""A sublime book that is far more than just the novel of the year."" --Deutschlandradio Kultur ""This novel has historical-philosophical dimensions: it is a significant contemplation on different forms of freedom as well as a wonderfully poetic exaltation of a concrete historical event--a truly great book."" --3sat Kulturzeit ""Seiler's novel is lyrical and powerful in its eloquence. Already he is to be counted among the great contemporary German literary figures."" --WDR 5 ""The poetic language and careful expression to the prose in Kruso make for an arresting read too, slightly odd and off-beat, but quite compelling. It's also a novel of big themes--freedom (personal and political), longing (in all its gradations), and mourning, in particular--and the narrative's general sense of drift, with these bobbling up constantly but never overwhelming the story, is particularly well done. A fine, big novel."" -M.A. Orthofer, The Complete Review ""An important work...in its chronicling of the final days of communism in East Germany...Excellent translation."" --Adrian Tahourdin, Times Literary Supplement ""Lutz Seiler, winner of the English PEN Award and German Book Prize, brings a tumultuous debut novel to an English-speaking audience. Set on a bohemian Baltic coastal island, this novel of a cult of personality during the last days of the Soviet occupation of the GDR grips readers just as Kruso's charisma grips our protagonist."" --World Literature Today ""It is certainly an impressive book worthy of admiration. It sole focus on the lives of an outlying few in the telling of one of modern history's most significant moments and the close intertwining of their lives with it, without ever directly addressing the politics or historical situation is a feat to behold."" --Raphael Solarsh, ArtsHub"

'Seiler's novel Kruso shows what German literature can accomplish when it's fully worked.' --Welt am Sonntag 'An outstanding debut novel ... Beautifully phrased and paced, Tess Lewis's translation delights on every page as she conveys the contagious sense of liberation that blows through Mr Seiler's mesmeric novel.' --The Economist 'An enigmatic Bildungsroman, adapting the literary trope of the island refuge to the dying days of East German socialism ... English readers can delight in this prizewinning translation from Tess Lewis, which renders Seiler's vision in prose of startling clarity.' --The Saturday Age 'A special book that will endure.' --Frankfurter Rundschau 'Lutz Seiler's writings trace their roots to Uwe Johnson's poetry and reflect the German past, present and future beyond the surface of simple truths ... In Kruso, Lutz Seiler visualises the hopes and constraints of a whole country by means of one singular place, Hiddensee, during one short period of time, June to November 1989.' --from the statement of the Uwe-Johnson-Prize 2014 jury 'A seamless English translation by Tess Lewis ... Readers might doubt whether Robinson Crusoe can work in a German setting -- they might even feel affronted that it's been attempted -- but Seiler's novel springs from his own experience in a way that underlines the universality of the tale.' --Newsweek '[A}n exciting, expansive work of German literature; it may well prove one of the major novels of the 21st century.' --Eileen Battersby, The Irish Times 'Seiler delivers a debut novel with which he manages to catapult himself into the front rank of this country's authors.' --Die Zeit 'A multi-layered philosophical novel that poses a major question to us and to our time: How is freedom possible?' --Die Zeit 'This novel set in the historic summer of 1989 is a lighthouse, not an ivory tower.' --S ddeutsche Zeitung 'That rare treasure -- a great novel.' --Potsdamer Neueste Nachrichten 'Seiler's novel is lyrical and powerful in its eloquence. Already he is to be counted among the great contemporary German literary figures.' --WDR 5 'A sublime book that is far more than just the novel of the year.' --Deutschlandradio Kultur 'This novel has historical-philosophical dimensions: it is a significant contemplation on different forms of freedom as well as a wonderfully poetic exaltation of a concrete historical event -- a truly great book.' --3sat Kulturzeit 'Kruso [is] the first worthy successor to Thomas Mann's Magic Mountain to appear in contemporary German literature.' --Der Spiegel

An important work...in its chronicling of the final days of communism in East Germany...Excellent translation. --Adrian Tahourdin Times Literary Supplement Lutz Seiler, winner of the English PEN Award and German Book Prize, brings a tumultuous debut novel to an English-speaking audience. Set on a bohemian Baltic coastal island, this novel of a cult of personality during the last days of the Soviet occupation of the GDR grips readers just as Kruso's charisma grips our protagonist. --World Literature Today Seiler's novel is lyrical and powerful in its eloquence. Already he is to be counted among the great contemporary German literary figures. --WDR 5 Lutz Seiler's writings trace their roots to Uwe Johnson's poetry and reflect the German past, present and future beyond the surface of simple truths.. .In Kruso, Lutz Seiler visualises the hopes and constraints of a whole country by means of one singular place, Hiddensee, during one short period of time, June to November 1989. --from the statement of the Uwe-Johnson-Prize 2014 jury A special book that will endure. --Frankfurter Rundschau An outstanding debut novel...Beautifully phrased and paced, Tess Lewis's translation delights on every page as she conveys the contagious sense of liberation that blows through Mr Seiler's mesmeric novel. --The Economist Seiler's novel Kruso shows what German literature can accomplish when it's fully worked. --Welt am Sonntag A multi-layered philosophical novel that poses a major question to us and to our time: How is freedom possible? --Die Zeit [A]n exciting, expansive work of German literature; it may well prove one of the major novels of the 21st century. --Eileen Battersby The Irish Times A sublime book that is far more than just the novel of the year. --Deutschlandradio Kultur Kruso [is] the first worthy successor to Thomas Mann's Magic Mountain to appear in contemporary German literature. --Der Spiegel This novel has historical-philosophical dimensions: it is a significant contemplation on different forms of freedom as well as a wonderfully poetic exaltation of a concrete historical event--a truly great book. --3sat Kulturzeit Seiler delivers a debut novel with which he manages to catapult himself into the front rank of this country's authors. --Die Zeit An enigmatic Bildungsroman, adapting the literary trope of the island refuge to the dying days of East German socialism...English readers can delight in this prizewinning translation from Tess Lewis, which renders Seiler's vision in prose of startling clarity. --The Saturday Age The poetic language and careful expression to the prose in Kruso make for an arresting read too, slightly odd and off-beat, but quite compelling. It's also a novel of big themes--freedom (personal and political), longing (in all its gradations), and mourning, in particular--and the narrative's general sense of drift, with these bobbling up constantly but never overwhelming the story, is particularly well done. A fine, big novel. --M.A. Orthofer The Complete Review That rare treasure--a great novel. --Potsdamer Neueste Nachrichten If communism's final moments are an island of time, Kruso is a bottled message washed up from those distant shores. A strange journey, Seiler's novel subscribes to island rules, with historicity suspended above and between fevered dreams of perfect community and beguiling freedom. --Letitia Montgomery-Rodgers Foreword Reviews A seamless English translation by Tess Lewis...Readers might doubt whether Robinson Crusoe can work in a German setting--they might even feel affronted that it's been attempted--but Seiler's novel springs from his own experience in a way that underlines the universality of the tale. --Newsweek This novel set in the historic summer of 1989 is a lighthouse, not an ivory tower. --S ddeutsche Zeitung

'[A}n exciting, expansive work of German literature; it may well prove one of the major novels of the 21st century.'--Eileen Battersby The Irish Times

Author Information

Lutz Seiler was born in 1963 in Gera, Thuringia, and today lives in Wilhelmshorst, near Berlin and Stockholm. Since 1997, he has been the literary director and custodian of the Peter Huchel Museum. His many prizes include the Ingeborg Bachmann Prize, the Bremen Prize for Literature, the Fontane Prize, the Uwe Johnson Literary Prize 2014, and the German Book Prize 2014. Tess Lewis is a writer and translator from French and German. Her translations include works by Peter Handke, Anselm Kiefer, and Philippe Jaccottet. She has won a number of awards including the 2015 ACFNY Translation Prize and a Guggenheim Fellowship. She is an Advisory Editor for The Hudson Review.

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