A Conversation With the Author
Where are you from?
Germany
Who are your favorite writers?
Heinrich Mann, Jose Samarago, Meir Shalev
Which book/books have had the biggest influence on your writing?
Everything I have read in my life has influenced my thinking and writing
What are your hobbies and outside interests?
Literature, film, and theatre. Light exercise to complement my sedentary activities. I have close friends who mean a lot to me.
What is the single best piece of advice anyone ever gave you?
Never give up
What is the question most commonly asked by your readers? What is the answer?
1) How this book came about.It started with an interview for the Steven Spielberg Shoah Foundation 2) Whether I have visited Bendzin while I was writing the novel. No I did not. Only after writing. 3) Non-Jewish readers in Germany wished to meet such a Mrs. Kugelmann, a narrator of their own history that had been withheld from them.
What inspired you to write your first book?
I interviewed a survivor for the Steven Spielberg Shoah Foundation. The survivor asked me not to forget his hometown in Poland: Bendzin.
Where do you write?
In my old apartment, at my old desk, on my old computer. Recently I had to exchange my old chair, what a pity!
