While We Were Dreaming by Clemens Meyer

 

While We Were Dreaming

by Clemens Meyer

Translated by Katy Derbyshire

Clemens Meyer’s autobiographical debut novel Als wir träumten, originally published in 2006, and now issued by Fitzcarraldo Editions in an English translation by Katy Derbyshire, has achieved something of a cult status in Germany as a fictionalised, literary account of the so-called “baseball bat years”. This term refers to the period right after the unification of West and East Germany, characterised by the rise of right-wing violence in the East. Meyer’s novel, in fact, is set in Leipzig over a period of roughly a decade straddling the eighties and nineties, and follows the misadventures of the teenage narrator – Daniel “Danny” Lenz –  and his group of friends as they try to navigate their way into adulthood without ending up dead or in prison. (Spoiler – not all of them succeed)

The novel paints a bleak picture of the time, as the boys grow into men in an environment marked by poverty, alcohol, violence and delinquency.  Their lives are unmoored and rudderless, a feeling further emphasized by the book’s episodic structure. The novel’s chapters do not follow a chronological order. Instead, the narration jumps backwards and forwards, and requires concentration until the pieces start falling into place. Just to give some examples, one of Danny’s friends insists on being called “Pitbull”, but it is only late in the novel that we learn how he got his nickname. Another dies after a carjacking gone horribly wrong, but he resurfaces in later episodes in the book (obviously set at an earlier date).

At over 500 pages, the novel is, in my view, overlong, especially considering the absence of an overarching plot, and a tendency for repetition (there’s a limit to the number of description of fights, beatings and drunken evenings, which one can take at a sitting). I admit that when I first started reading it, it tired me out around half way through, but I then picked it up again after a hiatus of over a year and appreciated it much more.  And despite first impressions, it’s not all doom and gloom. Underneath the darkness, there’s often a streak of humour, as well as, perhaps more surprisingly, bursts of warm humanity.

Katy Derbyshire deserves special kudos for bringing this translation project to fruition. Obviously, all translations present their specific challenges, but when the language and setting are so place-and-time-specific as in this novel, full as it is of the “street slang” of the period, it’s particularly difficult to retain the novel’s original impact and meaning. Derbyshire succeeds in rendering Meyer’s work in a tone which rings authentic and true.  It’s eye (and ear) opening to read about Derbyshire’s own account of the dilemmas she faced and choices she made in translating the novel.

Published 30 March 2023 (UK) - Fitzcarraldo Editions