Zehra Çırak was born in 1960 in Istanbul, Turkey. She moved to Germany with her family in 1962 and has lived in Berlin since 1982. Her awards include the Adelbert von Chamisso Prize (1989 and 2001)and the Hölderlin Prize (1994). She is the author of Flugfänger (1988); Vogel auf dem Rücken eines Elefanten: Gedichte (Bird on the back of an elephant, 1991); Fremde Flügel auf eigener Schulter (Stranger wings on its own shoulder, 1994); and Leibesübungen (Abdominal exercises, 2000).