How The Soldier Repairs The Gramophone
Saša Stanišić: How The Soldier Repairs the Gramophone,
translated from German by Anthea Bell, Weidenfeld & Nicolson, June 2008
Saša Stanišić's novel is a portrait of the Bosnian conflict
as seen through the eyes of a child. As such, the barriers of race and
background are seen for the absurd constructs that they are - why are his
neighbours who laughed and drank and sang together suddenly fighting, even
killing each other? Why must a little girl hide because she has the 'wrong'
name? As an adult, the protagonist returns to Visegrad and makes lists, lists
of all those who have disappeared and everything that has been destroyed. How
the Soldier Repairs the Gramophone does not take sides - it shows how
atrocities were committed by all parties in the war and how the survivors live
with silences in the post-conflict world as a means of overcoming the past. It is a novel that highlights the senseless
and brutal nature of ethnic violence, juxtaposed with the innocent and humorous
child's eye view of the world, where fishing and football co-exist with
soldiers taking away families. Charm and tragedy sit side by side, as well as
beautiful descriptions of the Bosnian landscape.
Saša Stanišić was born 1978 in Višegard in
Bosnia-Herzegovina and lives in Germany
since 1992. He has published short
stories, audio plays and essays, is engaged in literary performances and
theatre. How the Soldier Repairs the Gramophone is his first novel and was
shortlisted for the German Book Award as well as winning several other major
prizes with translations into 24 languages forthcoming. Stanišić is also the
recipient of the prestigious Graz
and Iowa writing fellowships.
Anthea Bell was born in Suffolk
and educated at Somerville College,
Oxford. She has been a translator
from French and German for many years. Her translations include works of
non-fiction, literary and popular fiction, and many children?s books, including
from the German a number of works by classic authors, and from the French (with
Derek Hockridge) the entire Astérix le Gaulois series by Goscinny and Uderzo.
She has received a number of prizes and awards, and has served on the committee
of the Translators Association and the jury panel of the Schlegel-Tieck German
translation prize. She now lives in Cambridge.
