Wladimir Kaminer - "Müttertage"

In his book "Müttertage", Wladimir Kaminer tells stories about mothers, daughters, grandmothers and mothers-in-law - with warmth and plenty of humour.

The opening features Kaminer's own mother: over ninety years old, with "fog in her head", yet tirelessly occupied with solving world crises and educating the cat. She is in good company in these stories. Mothers steer - more or less discreetly - the fate of their offspring, offer advice and entrust them with their secret recipe for aspic. Not always is this met with enthusiasm, but a story always emerges.

Potential mothers-in-law also play a role: whoever wants to please them is capable of remarkable transformations - Kaminer could observe this with his own son. At the heart lies the art of not losing sight of one another.