Katja Kettu (b. 1978 in Rovaniemi) achieved a major breakthrough with her third book, Kätilö (‘The Midwife’), which followed her novels Surujenkerääjä (‘The Sorrow Collector’) and Hitsaaja (‘The Welder’). At the centre of Kätilö is a love story between a Finnish midwife and German army officer during the Lapland War (1944–45). It won two major Finnish literary awards and was widely praised by critics and readers alike. Kettu’s lyrical prose features many northern Finnish dialectal terms and neologisms. Her writing plays with the duality of beauty and ugliness, with hints of ‘Northern grotesque’ and magic realism.
Besides being an author, Katja Kettu is also a director of animated films and music videos. She is also the singer in a punk band and often comments in the media on political subjects, particularly feminism. She hails from Finnish Lapland and spent some time living in Tallinn and London before settling in Helsinki.
German translations:
Wildauge, Galiani Verlag 2014, Übersetzung: Angela Plöger.
Photo: © Ofer Amir
Events
- Finnischer Abend, 03.10.2014 19:30
- Katja Kettu und Kjell Westö lesen bei Harborfront Hamburg, 06.10.2014 20:00
- Granta Finland 3, 08.10.2014 17:00
- Katja Kettu bei OPEN BOOKS, 08.10.2014 18:30
- Conversation | Gespräch, 09.10.2014 13:00
- Reading | Lesung, 09.10.2014 15:00
- Finnland. Cool. Party, 09.10.2014 17:00
- “Man muss die Finnen feiern, wie sie kommen – der große Galiani-Abend in der Romanfabrik”, 09.10.2014 20:00
- Conversation | Gespräch, 10.10.2014 12:00
- Reading | Lesung, 10.10.2014 20:00
- Katja Kettu bei “Literaturpflaster” Bad Berleburg, 12.10.2014 20:00
- Katja Kettu liest in Lüneburg, 13.10.2014 20:00
- Katja Kettu liest in Leipzig, 14.10.2014 20:15
- Katja Kettu liest in München, 15.10.2014 20:00
- Katja Kettu bei den Zofinger Literaturtagen, 18.10.2014 15:00