Tanja Dückers
Literature
Tanja Dückers, born in 1968 in Berlin, is a widely published German author, art historian, and essayist whose work spans fiction, poetry, children’s literature, drama, radio plays, and nonfiction. She has authored around twenty books, including the novels Himmelskörper (Celestial Bodies), Spielzone, Hausers Zimmer, and Café Brazil; essay collections such as Morgen nach Utopia and Über das Erinnern; four volumes of poetry; and the nonfiction book Das süße Berlin. Die Schokoladenseiten der Hauptstadt (“Sweet Berlin: The Chocolate Sides of the Capital”). Her writing has been translated into numerous languages.
Dückers is a frequent commentator on social and political issues, contributing essays and reviews to leading German outlets such as Die Zeit, Süddeutsche Zeitung, Tagesspiegel, Welt, Frankfurter Rundschau, Spiegel, Jungle World, and Deutschlandradio. She was a columnist for the Frankfurter Rundschau and ZEIT Online, and since 2008 has published a monthly socio-political essay for ZEIT Online. She regularly reviews new books for rbb and other media.
Her literary and essayistic work has earned her numerous awards and fellowships, bringing her to institutions such as Dartmouth College, Allegheny College, Oberlin College, Miami University, the University of Wisconsin–Madison, and Villa Aurora in Los Angeles, as well as to residencies and teaching posts across Europe and the United States. She is a member of PEN Berlin, Amnesty International, the Christa Wolf Society, ver.di, and the “Write on” network for literature from crisis regions.
Beyond writing, Dückers develops interdisciplinary projects with visual artists, composers, theater directors, and choreographers. She is the inventor of a secret script and, together with chocolatier Christoph Wohlfarth, founded the Berlin-based chocolate brand “Preussisch süß – Berliner Stadtteilschokolade,” with a special edition supporting humanitarian aid for Ukraine.
Tanja Dückers lives in Berlin with her family and a Shetland Sheepdog.