sábado, 29 de noviembre de 2014

Raten Sie mit beim Adventskalender-Gewinnspiel!


Das Jahr 2015 steht vor der Tür und mit ihm viele große Geburtstage. Wir fragen nach 24 berühmten Personen, die im kommenden Jahr Jubiläum feiern. Rätseln Sie mit und gewinnen Sie einen von vielen schönen Preisen.
nuerm wmarkt21 Weihnachtsmärkte: die beliebtesten und größten in Deutschland
Der Nünberger Christkindlesmarkt

viernes, 21 de noviembre de 2014

Hardcore Grimm brothers' fairytales


A new edition of the Grimm brothers' tales shows that the original versions were a good deal more gruesome than the ones we know (further sweetened by the Disney factory). Between 1812 and 1857 the brothers published several editions in which they softened the stories and made them more child-friendly.

According to Jack Zipes, author of this new edition, "Though the Grimms kept about 100 of the tales from the first edition, they changed them a good deal. So, the versions with which most English-speaking (and German-speaking) readers are familiar are quite different from the tales in the first edition."

In 'How the Children Played at Slaughtering', for example, a group of children play at being a butcher and a pig. It ends badly: a boy cuts the throat of his little brother, only to be stabbed in the heart by his enraged mother. Unfortunately, the stabbing meant she left her other child alone in the bath, where he drowned. Unable to be cheered up by the neighbours, she hangs herself; when her husband gets home, “he became so despondent that he died soon thereafter”. 

To learn more juicy details about Rapunzel, the evil queen in Snow White or Cinderella read this article.

viernes, 14 de noviembre de 2014

Bad Sex (Literary) Awards


OK, this entry is a bit steamy.

Britain's most dreaded literary prize, the Bad Sex Literary Award in Fiction,  seeks 'to draw attention to poorly written, perfunctory or redundant passages of sexual description in modern fiction, and to discourage them.'  The fiction in question is not erotic but 'serious' literature. Now in its 22nd edition, this year's shortlist includes heavyweight authors like Haruki Murakami, and Booker or Pulitzer winners.

To learn more read this article describing the whole thing.

You can also visit the Literary Review. There's a funny video about the selection process.

The Bad Sex Award is one among other weird literary prizes.

martes, 4 de noviembre de 2014

25 Jahre Fall der Mauer


Der Song "Wind Of Change" von Scorpions prägte eine Generation. 
Er gilt als Hymne der Wende. 
                         

  • I follow the Moskva 
And down to Gorky Park
Listening to the wind of change

An August summer night
Soldiers passing by
Listening to the wind of change

The world is closing in
And did you ever think
That we could be so close, like brothers

The future's in the air
I can feel it everywhere
Blowing with the wind of change

Take me to the magic of the moment
On a glory night
Where the children of tomorrow dream away
In the wind of change

Walking down the street
And distant memories
Are buried in the past forever

I follow the Moskva
And down to Gorky Park
Listening to the wind of change

Take me to the magic of the moment
On a glory night
Where the children of tomorrow share their dreams
With you and me

Take me to the magic of the moment
On a glory night
Where the children of tomorrow dream away
In the wind of change

The wind of change blows straight
Into the face of time
Like a storm wind that will ring
The freedom bell for peace of mind
Let your balalaika sing
What my guitar wants to say

Take me to the magic of the moment
On a glory night
Where the children of tomorrow share their dreams
With you and me

Take me to the magic of the moment
On a glory night
Where the children of tomorrow dream away
In the wind of change