Carmen-Francesca Banciu is the author of six novels and several short story collections radio plays. A native of Romania, Banciu has been writing and publishing in the German language since 1996. An established award-winning writer in 1980s, she received a publication ban in Romania for the ideologically dissident views implicit in her writing. Read More Despite the interdiction, Banciu continued to write and publish her works in Germany, which would be the country to which she would emigrate half a decade later. A participating eyewitness to the Romanian revolution, Banciu migrated to Germany in 1990, shortly after being awarded an Artists’ Grant for a writing sojourn in Germany from the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD). 

Since her debut in German language fiction with Vaterflucht, a memoiristic novel published to much critical acclaim in the mid-nineties, Banciu has embraced German as her primary literary language and has since established herself as a Berlin-based writer, publishing six novels, and several collections of short stories. She is also a cultural commentator and creative writing teacher. Banciu’s thematically rich body of work remains currently underrepresented in the Anglophone literary landscape. Migration, women’s empowerment and a reckoning with a Communist past and transnationalism are central themes in her works. Her original voice, distinct brand of cultural cosmopolitanism and economically poignant prose are sure to strike a chord in this unique moment in the English-speaking literary landscape.