The Scheherazade story opens with a writer asking for support at the job center. When mentioning his line of work the troubles start – »Writer? There is no such profession«. But cunning as he is, he suggests a deal. He offers to tell the man behind the desk a story who will then, if he likes it, approve the writer’s request. The ensuing »storytelling for survival« turns out to be the driving force of this novel brimming with volte-faces and allusions.
Like a matryoshka revealing more dolls on the inside, the different plots keep creating new narrative levels and worlds. With Tolly Grotesky, Lea Agunis, Abu Adwan and others, Tomer Gardi portrays unforgettable characters that are subject to the whims of state authority in daily life and that have their very own ways of dealing with it.
Number 1 of the Litprom-Bestenliste Spring 2019: »A wild, funny, completely undisciplined literary round dance which roasts the Israeli society. And not only with this one.« (Insa Wilke, jury member)
»An anarchical, riotous funny novel.« (Wiebke Porombka, FAZ)
»Artful, amusing and exhilarant.« (Harald Klauhs, Die Presse)
»Tomer Gardi’s literature is on the one hand easygoing, on the other also very sophisticated. His novel is entertaining and conveys political issues, especially Tomer Gardi’s humour is a weapon.« (Carsten Hueck, Ex Libris and SWR2 Lesenswert)
»The stories about bullfight and a wishs fullfilling fish are constructed in a fantastic style and also critical of society. The diversified and fresh handling of language does the rest, that the novel can be read as a modern, entertaining version of One Thousand an One Nights.« (Amelie May, LitLog)
»You can call the real word ›Absurdistan‹ – Tomer Gardi shows this in a wonderful way. He plays as well with language as with the life, meanders between narratological levels, goes on a journey of exploration in a fantastic world which is located right in front of our door.« (Johannes Schröer, Domradio)
»Super funny, super serious, and a super smart play with everything that’s human. Crazy!« (Pieke Biermann, Literaturagenten Radio Eins)
»Gardi plays with the One-Thounsand-and-One-Night-clishé. Too soon these 160 pages come to an end. We would have loved to listen much longer.« (Dominika Meindl, Falter)
»As funny as profound, poetic filed, but still handy. This is an excellent novel that deserves attention and readers.« (Gerrit Völker, Maternus Buchhandlung, Köln)
»Funny, loving, poetic.« (Ruth liest)