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Weihnachten – Die wunderbare Kraft *Merry Christmas *

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box-card-celebration-1670559Weihnachten – Die wunderbare Kraft

(Ein Gedicht von Samantha Sam)

 

In der Weihnacht ein Menschenskind die Welt betrat,

in ihm sich der Same für eine besondere Kraft verbarg.

Eine Idee entfaltete eine wunderbare Kraft,

die in Geschichten Jahrtausende überdauert hat.

.

Lichter glitzern in den Fenstern und Straßen,

Geschäftiges Treiben herrscht in den Gassen.

Frohsinn und Besinnlichkeit erklingt,

während die Natur die Stille des Winters besingt.

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Überall glitzernde Kugeln und bunte Lichter.

Zuckergebäck erhellen die Kindergesichter. [Read more…] about Weihnachten – Die wunderbare Kraft *Merry Christmas *

Xmas Gift Book Tip #5 – Kurt Tucholsky’s Whimsical Stories About the Afterlife

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Tucholsky-HereafterOur last book tip for Christmas 2018 makes us indulge in famous German literature. It’s a book that is not only a must for all Tucholsky fans but also for everyone, who loves Berlin and its history.

“Hereafter. We Were Sitting on a Cloud, Dangling Our Legs.” is a collection of humorous short stories by Tucholsky that for the first time appear as a collection in a book as well as being published in English.

“Hereafter”, Kurt Tucholsky’s Whimsical Stories About the Afterlife 

(by Dr. Eva C. Schweitzer )

Kurt Tucholsky is known for his political and satirical stories in the Weimar era, but the famed author also had a whimsical, spiritual side, and we experience it in this book, Hereafter. We Were Sitting on a Cloud, Dangling Our Legs.

Tucholsky ImageBerlinicaHereafter was originally a loose series of humorous short stories. Tucholsky wrote them between 1925 and 1928, while he was on assignment in Paris for his paper, Die Weltbühne (The World Stage). This is the first time these stories are collected in a book — adorned with pictures of little angels from Berlin’s cemeteries —, and also the first time they are translated into English. [Read more…] about Xmas Gift Book Tip #5 – Kurt Tucholsky’s Whimsical Stories About the Afterlife

Xmas Gift Book Tip #4 – A Book for Children, “Tesha Discovers The World”

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Our 4th XMAS gift book tip is a book for children!

Tesha Discovers The World by Claudia Tichy, was written, “for the tender children’s souls, keeping in mind the healing power over disease, fears, and other burdens.”

If you follow our monthly XPAT Spotlight interviews, you might remember our November interview with Claudia, where she tells us about the various healing therapies she’s specialized in. They are much sought after in Europe, and now are available here in California.

In fact, the idea for the book “Tesha Discovers The World” came about through Claudia’s work with children in Family Constellations, established in this particular form by Bert Hellinger.

CAG: You mention the stories in Tesha are about healing and go beyond the regular storytelling.  Can you explain this more in detail? [Read more…] about Xmas Gift Book Tip #4 – A Book for Children, “Tesha Discovers The World”

Xmas Gift Book Tip #2 -“Die Insel der Weissen Affen” (Science Fiction)

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Science Fiction Novel – Die Insel der Weissen Affen by Dieter Kermas

How about a spooky science fiction novel for Christmas? Some of us can’t get enough of this kind of stories no matter what the occasion. We just love the suspense of the real or unreal dangers that could possibly expose our planet earth or mankind at large. 

So, there you go. Here is the take of Dieter Kermas, long time author for CaliforniaGermans, who has delighted us with his stories and poems over the years and has shared his childhood war memories with us in a series we started posting in 2013. In his new novel, he is taking us on a journey into the unknown future of mankind. Find out for yourself where humankind will end up in his newly published book: “Die Insel der weissen Affen” available on amazon.de 

We Asked Him, What Inspired Him to try himself on a science fiction story, after he had just published his historical fiction in 2016 about a WWII romance happening between the enemy lines of Germany and Russia, “Kolja: “Liebe Im Feindesland”.

Dieter Kermas: My ending up writing a science fiction novel was more or less accidental I have to admit. I initially had planned for an adventure novel, that would play out on a South Sea island, but the storytelling suddenly played a trick on me. It seems it almost ‘came alive’ and pulled me into a completely different direction. It took unexpected and unplanned turns and suddenly I was writing a science fiction novel.

CaliforniaGermans: Did you read science fiction as a child? [Read more…] about Xmas Gift Book Tip #2 -“Die Insel der Weissen Affen” (Science Fiction)