Ruth Olshan in Heilbronn: Reading from Evergreen about exile and memory
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Ruth Olshan reads from Evergreen at the Literature House Heilbronn
A trunk full of urns, a journey to Lithuania, and the memory of a life between languages, countries, and losses: Ruth Olshan presents her novel Evergreen at the Literature House Heilbronn. The reading with conversation connects personal family history with the big themes of exile, new beginnings, and the saving power of art.
A Journey to the Roots of the Family
At the center of the novel is Ruth, who brings her mother’s and grandmother’s urns to the family’s lost homeland. The trip to Lithuania becomes an emotional journey through a biography marked by migration, cultural uprooting, and the difficult process of arriving.
Between Israel, West Berlin, and Lithuania
Olshan tells of a childhood after emigration in the 1970s. Israel and West Berlin serve not only as settings but also as spaces of experience filled with language difficulties, bureaucratic hurdles, and the desire for normalcy. The narrative movement of the novel follows the fault lines of a family and reveals how history continues to unfold in private relationships.
The Quiet Power of Music and Sports
Particularly poignant is the relationship between Ruth and her mother, a once-celebrated singer who struggles with depression. Music becomes a memory and an expression of what cannot be said directly. Ruth finds support in sports and everyday routines, while art appears as a quiet counterforce to political and familial upheavals.
An Author Between Film, Literature, and Cultural Memory
Ruth Olshan was born in Moscow to a Ukrainian-Lithuanian family and grew up in Israel and Berlin. She works as an author, director, and screenwriter. For her film work, she has received several awards including the Richard Attenborough Award, the Friedrich Wilhelm Murnau Award, the German Television Award, and a Golden Camera. Her experience with visual dramaturgy also shapes the literary style of Evergreen: Memories appear in clear scenes, emotional images, and precise observations.
Reading and Conversation with Dr. Anton Knittel
After the reading, Ruth Olshan will discuss her novel with Dr. Anton Knittel, exploring biographical writing and the literary processing of exile and family history. The audience can expect a focused author encounter with room for questions and a deeper look at the creation of Evergreen. The event lasts from 7:00 PM to 8:30 PM.
The Literature House Heilbronn thus offers a literary experience about memory, origins, and the possibility of finding one's own voice amidst great upheavals. Those who want to experience Ruth Olshan's linguistic art and the multifaceted story of Evergreen live should mark this evening at the Trappenseeschlösschen.
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- Website: https://rutholshan.de/
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