Peirene Press Ltd Half Swimmer

Half Swimmer. A German term for one who has recently learnt to swim but hasnt yet mastered the technique. Growing up in 1980s East Germany, as the daughter of an army officer and a teacher, Tanja seems set up to become a model citizen of the German Democratic Republic. Except she has other ideas. And so, it turns out, does the course of history. This is a collection of memories from one life, following a girl as she attempts to forge her own identity under the social pressures of both the GDR, and the capitalism of a unified Germany. Katja Oskamp knows how to capture the essence of people beautifully. They really come to life in her portraits. Frank-Walter Steinmeier, President of Germany Autorid: Katja Oskamp, Jo Heinrich