Elke Reinauer is a writer based in Germany with strong ties to the Yukon. Please email comments about her articles to editor@whatsupyukon.com.
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Elke Reinauer
Issue: 2017-03-22, PHOTO: by Benjamin Lauterbach courtesy of the Frankfurt Book Fair
Bringing Yukon literature to the world stage
Each October, the city of Frankfurt in Germany plays host to the second largest literary trade fair in the world, with 7,153 exhibitors representing 106 countries present in 2016. The Frankfurt Book Fair (known as the Frankfurter Buchmesse (FBM)... Read more
Writing toward inclusion
Practically unheard of - the top 10 books reviewed last year were evenly split between male and female authors. And never before: the number of men and women reviewing books in Canada is nearly equal. That’s what the Canadian Women in the Literary... Read more
Issue: 2015-12-03 PHOTO: Christian Kuntz
Poetry in Action
Poetry, spoken word performances, plays and short stories; all these literary exploits and more can be heard at Brave New Words, a showcase of local literary talent. Lit-lovers can enjoy an evening of music poetry and cocktails at the event, which... Read more
Issue: 2015-09-24 PHOTO: courtesy Elke Reinauer
Another Christmas without my family
Living far away from your family means that sometimes your strength and persistence will be tested. It's Christmas 2014 and I am in Montreal. A cold wind is blowing, the sky is grey and it's raining. Read more
Issue: 2015-03-05 PHOTO: courtesy of Blind Date
Blind Date with a Clown
Having a blind date can be very stressful — from thinking about what to wear and say, to awkward silences and thoughts of escape. Now imagine having a blind date every night. Read more
Issue: 2015-02-26 PHOTO: Elke Reinauer
The Call of Fastnacht
I am not a homesick person, but I can hear the Black Forest calling me home during Fastnacht, which means carnival. For many people in southern Germany, Fastnacht is a far more important holiday then Christmas. Read more
Issue: 2015-02-19 PHOTO: courtesy of HarperCollins
The Dream of a Normal Life
Living in the suburbs, having children and a husband, driving a minivan: for some this may sound boring, but it is Cea Sunrise Person’s dream come true. Person’s memoir, North of Normal (published at HarperCollins) describes her childhood Read more
Issue: 2018-11-21, PHOTO: courtesy of Joanna Lilley
An author’s dream ...
Yukon-based writer Joanna Lilley has published her first novel, Worry Stones, after 17 years of working on it. “I wasn´t working on it every day, during that time. There were periods when I put it aside.” Read more
Issue: 2018-08-01, PHOTO: Darlene Sillery
Magic under the mountains
Haines Junction is gearing up for the second-annual Augusto Children`s Festival. With 28 workshops for kids aged five to 12, on puppet-making, magic, Southern Tutchone dance, circus skills, ukulele playing … and many more. It’s the Yukon’s only... Read more
Issue: 2018-07-18, PHOTO: Da Ping Luo
Magic on the Trail
Hilary Lorenz is an artist living in Brooklyn, New York. Like a lot of artists she has many projects going on. One of them is the Moth Migration Project, which is an ongoing international project where people worldwide created moths out of paper... Read more
Issue: 2018-07-04, PHOTO: Greg Runyan
Inspired by Place
Kristin Link is a visual artist based in McCarthy, Alaska, who works in natural history and science art. She creates interpretive signs and educational material about nature. She has a background in Environmental Studies and graduated from... Read more
Issue: 2018-07-04, PHOTO: Lily Gontard
Atlin Lit Up! lights up the Yukon writing scene
The Atlin writers’ festival not only offers music but also offers literature, readings and workshops. Yukon author Lily Gontard organizes the festival in cooperation with Yukon Writers` Collective Ink. They receive funding and sponsoring from... Read more
Issue: 2018-06-27, PHOTO: Don Hutton
It’s a cultured Canada Day in Mayo
The Mayo Arts Festival and Canada Day celebrations are highlights during the summer. Everybody is looking forward to the celebrations, and preparations have already started, said festival coordinator, Esther Winter. Since 2007, Esther Winter has... Read more
Issue: 2018-06-20, PHOTO: courtesy of Josh Winkler
From the California gold rush to the history of the Yukon
Josh Winkler´s work is no stranger to the Yukon. In 2016 his work was exhibited with two other artists at the Yukon Arts Centre; Cut Climb Conquer was the title of his exhibition. He used watercolour and printmaking to show the history of American... Read more
Issue: 2018-05-23, PHOTO: courtesy of Marcelle Dubé
Investigating lost bull semen
Marcelle Dubé has written the fifth novel of her Mendenhall Mystery Series titled The Forsaken Men. It´s published by the author under her own imprint Falcon Ridge Publishing. Her Mendenhall isn’t a subdivision of Whitehorse, but rather a fictive... Read more
Issue: 2018-04-04, PHOTO: Elke Reinauer
Black forest cake in Namibia
A group of bare-breasted native Himba women is disembarking a taxi to sell crafts at the park beneath the red and white lighthouse. While the owner of the nearby café starts chatting in German with a patron, a Herero woman in a colorful dress... Read more
Issue: 2017-11-29, PHOTO: Elke Reinauer
Yukon writers gear-up for Frankfurt Book Fair
With over 280,000 visitors and 1,000 authors, the Frankfurt Book Fair is the largest book fair in the world and an important event for international trade deals, with over 7 000 exhibitors from 100 nations, according to the fair website. It is... Read more
Issue: 2017-09-27, PHOTO: Heidi Hehn
Poetry and Visual Art Create a Dialogue
Just like poetry inspires music, it also can inspire visual art. That is what artist Heidi Hehn says about the Circumpolar Duet project, which is a collaboration between visual artists and poets that will launch on Sept. 29 as part of the Culture... Read more
Issue: 2017-08-30, PHOTO: courtesy of Kathy Munro
Fresh poetic summer reads
Body of Evidence: A Collection of Killer ’Ku, edited by Kathy Munro and Jessica Simon Haiku is traditionally five-seven-five-syllable poems about nature, love and emotions. Haiku has its origins in Japan and a zen-like, peaceful spirit. Read more
Issue: 2017-08-09, PHOTO: Elke Reinauer
From the East to the Beautiful South
Keen on history? The Castle Wartburg in Wittenberg in Eastern Germany offers an opportunity to learn about the 500th Anniversary of Martin Luther’s Reformation. The castle is the place where Luther translated the bible and lived with his family. Read more
Issue: 2017-07-19, PHOTO: Elke Reinauer
Celebrating Sausages
The Germans are known by the nickname “The Krauts,” which comes from sauerkraut, a famous German dish comprised of fermented cabbage. Maybe Germans should be nicknamed “The Sausages” instead, because we have 1,500 kinds of different sausages in... Read more
Issue: 2017-06-07, PHOTO: courtesy of Elke Reinauer
Experiencing Theatre in Namibia
It's 15 minutes before our performance starts and one of my actors has a meltdown. “No, I am not gonna play,” he says avoiding eye contact. Philo is 12 years old and usually confident. I would never have expected that from him. It’s Valentine’s... Read more
Issue: 2017-05-10, PHOTO: courtesy of Joanna Lilley
All Her Roads Lead to Poetry
Yukon based writer Joanna Lilley has just published her second collection of poetry If there Were Roads by Turnstone Press; she says that there are no roads to the past. “You can never go back.” Inspired by a childhood memory, she wrote “The... Read more
Issue: 2017-02-15, PHOTO: Elke Reinauer
Experiencing creative writing in Namibia
I am sitting in the Lemon Tree Restaurant in Windhoek, Namibia, waiting for my fellow writers to show up. It is raining, and everybody is happy about that. Rain is a gift in Namibia; it is such a dry country and it rarely rains... Read more
Issue: 2016-12-07, PHOTO: courtesy of Jerome Stueart
This is Home
Former Yukoner Jerome Stueart and Yukon author Marcelle Dubé will read together form their books on Dec. 13 at Baked Cafe. It will be an evening about fantasy novels. Marcelle Dubé is still deciding from which of her many books she will read: ... Read more
Issue: 2016-11-16, PHOTO: courtesy of Elke Reinauer
Learning About Ubuntu in Namibia
My African friends think that Yukoners are cannibals. When I told them the story about the Sourtoe Cocktail I expected the usual reaction: laughter and amusement. But instead I got wide-open eyes and mouths asking me: “You did this?” they asked me... Read more
Issue: 2016-11-09, PHOTO: by Elke Reinauer
Book Fair Fever in Frankfurt
Good news first: Canada will be a guest of honour at the Frankfurt Book Fair. Bad news: We have to wait four years. 2020 is far away, but Livres Canada is already excited about it and posting the news on its website. This year, Flanders (a part... Read more