Yang Shuang-zi's Booker Prize-Winning 'Das Taiwan-Tagebuch' Launches in Germany with Readings

Taiwanese author Yang Shuang-zi will present her novel 'Das Taiwan-Tagebuch' (The Taiwan Diary) in Germany in early October 2025, ahead of the German release on October 6 by publisher Dumont. The book, which won the International Booker Prize 2026 and the National Book Award for Translated Literature in 2024, will be featured at readings in Munich and Hamburg. On October 1, Yang reads at the Literaturhaus München; on October 5, she appears at the Harbour Front Festival in Hamburg. She will also attend the Frankfurt Book Fair from October 7 to 11. The novel, set in 1938, follows Japanese writer Aoyama Chizuko as she travels to Taiwan under Japanese colonial rule, seeking authentic local life and cuisine. She is accompanied by a Taiwanese interpreter and cook, Chizuru, with whom she develops a close relationship complicated by power dynamics. The narrative, disguised as a translation of a rediscovered text, explores history, the cultural significance of food and language, and a bittersweet love story. Yang Shuang-zi is a versatile writer of novels, essays, manga, video game scripts, and literary criticism. The English translation by Lin King has been published in multiple languages, including Italian, Danish, and Dutch. The author's itinerary also includes the 46th Erlanger Poetenfest, as noted in the article.