Arno Geiger

Tidigt på morgonen ger sig en ung man iväg på cykel i Wien. Vart han åker och vad han gör förblir hans hemlighet. När han återvänder är han trött - men ofta lycklig. I årtionden förde den österrikiske författaren Arno Geiger ett dubbelliv. Nu berättar han historien om hur han fann sin väg, till språket och berättelserna, tack vare containerfynd. Om hur komplicerade, smärtsamma och överraskande våra vägar kan vara, även den till sann kärlek. Och om den växande oron för föräldrarna. Den lyckliga hemligheten är en bok full av erfarenhet från livet och gatan. Full av empati, kärlek och sorg. Med humor och stor öppenhet berättar Arno Geiger om pappersavfallet som kulminerade i hans genombrott som författare. Men ingen visste om hans lyckliga hemlighet, om att hitta, återvinna och slänga bort, och slutligenom glädjen i att lyckas. Arno Geiger, född 1968, är en av Österrikes mest framgångsrika författare i sin generation. Han är född och uppvuxen i västra Österrike, nära den schweiziska gränsen, och har studerat litteratur och historia. Han debuterade 1999 och har sedan skrivit ett tiotal romaner. Sitt stora genombrott fick han 2005 med Es geht uns gut (Vi har det bra), för vilken han belönades med Tyska bokpriset, den tyska motsvarigheten till Augustpriset. Bland andra utmärkelser kan nämnas Österrikes litteraturpris (2018) och Europeiska litteraturpriset i Nederländerna (2020). Arno Geiger är bosatt i Wien och Wolfurt. Den lyckliga hemligheten är författarens senaste bok. På svenska har tidigare Den gamle kungen i exil givits ut (2015), om hans far som drabbades av alzheimer.

Winner of the Schlegel-Tieck Prize for German Translation'Both a great anti-war novel and a love story, full of tenderness – as around it the world shatters.' – Der Spiegel, 'Novel of the Year'The year is 1944 and Veit Kolbe, a young German soldier, injured fighting in Russia, is recovering in a small village below Drachenwand mountain in Austria. Here he meets Margot and Margarete, two young women who share his hope that sometime, sooner or later, life will begin again.The war is lost but how long will it take before it finally comes to its end? Arno Geiger’s Hinterland, translated from the German by Jamie Bulloch, tells of Veit’s nightmares and the strangely normal life of the village, of the Brazilian who dreams of returning to Rio de Janeiro, of the landlady and her rallying calls, of Margarete the teacher with whom Veit falls in love, but who doesn’t return his affection.But when Veit’s wounds are healed his next call-up orders arrive. The military outlook for Germany and Austria looks increasingly grim and Veit’s luck has run out . . .Translated from the German by Jamie Bulloch

Winner of the Schlegel-Tieck Prize for German Translation'Both a great anti-war novel and a love story, full of tenderness – as around it the world shatters.' – Der Spiegel, 'Novel of the Year'The year is 1944 and Veit Kolbe, a young German soldier, injured fighting in Russia, is recovering at Mondsee, a village and a lake below Drachenwand mountain, close to Salzburg in Austria. Here he meets Margot and Margarete, two young women who share his hope that sometime, sooner or later, life will begin again.The war is lost but how long will it take before it finally comes to its end? In Hinterland, Arno Geiger tells of Veit’s nightmares and the strangely normal life of the small village, of the Brazilian who dreams of returning to Rio de Janeiro, of the landlady and her rallying calls, of Margarete the teacher with whom Veit falls in love, but who doesn't return his affection.But when Veit’s wounds are healed his next call-up orders arrive. The military outlook for Germany and Austria looks increasingly grim and Veit’s luck has run out . . .Translated from the German by Jamie Bulloch

A poignant, heartbreaking novel depicting the quiet heroism of ordinary people in the face of suffering, and the struggle to live a normal life as the world falls apart around them.

What makes us who we are? Arno Geiger's father was never an easy man to know and when he developed Alzheimer's, Arno realised he was not going to ask for help. 'As my father can no longer cross the bridge into my world, I have to go over to his.' So Arno sets out on a journey to get to know him at last. Born in 1926 in the Austrian Alps, into a farming family who had an orchard, kept three cows, and made schnapps in the cellar, his father was conscripted into World War II as a 'schoolboy soldier' - an experience he rarely spoke about, though it marked him. Striking up a new friendship, Arno walks with him in the village and the landscape they both grew up in and listens to his words, which are often full of unexpected poetry.Through his intelligent, moving and often funny account, we begin to see that whatever happens in old age, a human being retains their past and their character. Translated into nearly 30 languages, The Old King in His Exile will offer solace and insight to anyone coping with a loved one's aging.