Fatma Aydemir im Gespräch mit Fatima Daas – SPIEL DAS SPIEL

In the organizer's words:

Fatima Daas is a guest at the Institut français Berlin with her new book "Spiel das Spiel" - for an evening together at Cinéma Paris, in conversation with Fatma Aydemir and translated by Milena Adam.

After her successful novel "The Youngest Daughter", which was made into a film by director Hafsia Herzi, the author returns with a new, haunting, personal and political text.

"Spiel das Spiel" continues the self-discovery that is so special about her writing style: the identity crisis in adolescence between intimate questions and the banality of this phase of life, the role of school as a place of opportunity, but also of tension, and the power relations that are tacitly played out there. As the voice of a young person from the suburbs, Fatima Daas sheds light on the discrimination and stigmatization to which she is exposed on a daily basis.

For this exceptional evening, we offer you an encounter around her work, accompanied by a conversation with the German journalist and writer Fatma Aydemir.

The conversation will be held in French and German. Milena Adam will translate.

With the support of the Franco-German Youth Office.

Synopsis of Play the Game by Fatima Daas

Kayden is never alone: at home, her mother and big sister are always by her side. At school, there are her friends: Nelly, the athlete, Samy, the dreamer, and Djenna, who never lets anyone fool her. Kayden observes how everyone is looking for their place in a rigid system. She writes down what she sees - and what she doesn't see.

One day, Madame Fontaine, the strict French teacher at her new school, reads one of her texts. A door opens, she senses: Kayden will be the next to pass the entrance exam for the elite Sciences Po university. Kayden doesn't know if that's what she wants; what she wants is to spend time with her teacher. Only much too late does she realize the imbalance in their relationship - that Mme Fontaine plays by different rules than she does.

Fatima Daas tells a powerful and haunting story of close homes and even closer friendships, of solidarity and racism - and of the narrow ideas that institutions have of young people from the banlieue. Does Kayden have to play the game - or can she change it?

More information about Fatima Daas

Fatima Daas was born in France in 1995 as the youngest child of Algerian parents. In her debut novel The Youngest Daughter, she deals with her Algerian origins and her French life, her Muslim faith and her homosexuality. The novel was on the French bestseller list for weeks, was acclaimed by the press and translated into numerous languages. In 2021, the German translation was awarded the International Literature Prize.

Further information about Fatma Aydemir

Fatma Aydemir was born in Karlsruhe in 1986 and lives in Berlin. Her debut novel "Ellbogen" was published by Hanser in 2017, for which she received the Klaus Michael Kühne Prize and the Franz Hessel Prize. In 2019, she co-edited the anthology "Eure Heimat ist unser Albtraum" with Hengameh Yaghoobifarah. Her second novel "Dschinns" (Hanser, 2022) was awarded the Robert Gernhardt Prize and the LiteraTour Nord 2023 Prize.

Further information about Milena Adam

Milena Adam, born in Hamburg in 1991, is a translator and interpreter from French and English. She has translated Eileen Myles, Alain Damasio and Phillip B. Williams, among others. She lives in Berlin.