Ulrike Wolz from Vaterstetten celebrated her 100th birthday - not her own, but that of her 100th reading.
A visit to the community library.
Vaterstetten - "When I gave my first reading in Vaterstetten, I was in an emotional valley," remembers Ulrike Wolz.
Her mother had died and the children had grown up - Wolz was looking for a new job.
When the operators of Café Klamm were looking for a special event idea in December 2002, Wolz's son suggested: "Let my mother read aloud, because nobody else reads like her!"
Vaterstetten: The first reading almost 20 years ago
Almost 20 years later, Ulrike Wolz is pleased that many listeners have remained loyal to her since then.
Due to the high demand, the events have long been moved to the community library, where Wolz's 100th reading was now taking place.
To celebrate the anniversary, all of the proceeds went to the reading case campaign: The Vaterstetten bookstore wants to make primary school pupils want to read.
"Reading is so important, especially in these dark times," emphasized Wolz.
Book recommendations for every taste
For the 100th reading in the well-frequented library, she had more book recommendations ready for every taste.
She started with the family novel “The Beer Queen of Minnesota” by J. Ryan Stradal: “You can tell that the author also writes for television: When you read, images arise in your head.” The story of three women “offers insights into American drinking habits and lots of details about craft beer, ”said Wolz.
From aspiration to humor
She described “Kairos” by Jenny Erpenbeck, an award-winning author and “one of the great voices of contemporary German literature” as the most demanding book of the evening. The book is about the obsessive love between a 19-year-old and an over 50-year-old in the cultural scene of the sinking GDR.
"I started this book in the truest sense of the word, you have to put some work into it, but it was worth it: The whole range of feelings is told."
An extraordinary language, hard facts mixed with emotional poetic texts, Wolz attests to the novel "Big Brother, Little Sister" by Kim Thuy, which tells of two orphans during the Vietnam War.
Vaterstetten: Next reading on December 8th
“Trivial literature at its best”, however, is the historical novel “Dallmayr” by Lisa Graf: with excellent research, the author tells the story of the Randlkofer family in Munich during the Prince Regent period.
"A book to browse through."
At the end it should be a cheerful book: Wolz 'choice fell on the crime thriller "Miss Merkel - Murder in the Uckermark" by David Safier, although she admitted that she had not been able to cope with the author's humor so far.
This time it was different: the book cheerfully and ironically tells the story of the Chancellor's retirement, in which she becomes a detective, with Achim and Putin by her side.
As always, the complete list of Wolz's recommendations is available in the Vaterstetten bookstore.
On December 8th, the reader invites you to the community library for her traditional, cheerful Christmas reading.
Susanne Edelmann
