Jennifer Richard

Jennifer Richard was born in Los Angeles, mostly because her parents were driven by the "American Dream". As a child, she lived in many French oversea territories (Tahiti, Wallis), before she settled in Paris. She has Norman and Guadeloupean roots.  Because she discovered France from the other side of the earth, and because she has stayed in various remote French regions, (Mayotte, Guyane, New Caledonia), she developped a personal reflection about the relationship between a citizen and his state.

After she studied Law, she worked for television as a footage researcher. She then began dedicating herself to literature. She lives in Berlin since 2019.

Attached to political and historical topics, she has written several novels, with emancipation and imperialism as main themes.

She also writes children books and has written a crime novel, which intrigue takes place on the Carribean island of Marie-Galante.

What brought you to Berlin? Love? World politics? Or was it a coincidence?

After too many years in Paris, I wanted to slow down and dedicate myself to literature. I discovered Berlin at the end of a motoride roadtrip and was amazed by the "Deutsche Vita", which I had no idea existed. it seemed possible to have a slow, green and peaceful life in a European capital city. I decided to give it a try. No regret so far.

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What do you love about Berlin?

I like to encounter animals every day: falcons, buzzard from my window, swans and cranes in the parks, foxes in the streets. Big trees and flowers, forests and lakes at walking or subway distance. Architecture, cimeteries. Good croissants, huge beers. I like the social diversity, which no longer exists in Paris. I like the order and disciplin (and some days I don't like it so much). I like the humor of the BVG ads. I like the helpfullness of people, even though they seem rough at first. The huge cultural buzz and generosity towards artists of all fields and countries. The mark of history. The ghosts, everywhere.

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What do you miss in Berlin?

I miss French humor. French holy Apéritif, during which we can lead flaming conversations about politics. I miss my parents.

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What is your favorite spot in Berlin?

I love swimm accross the Schlachtensee, my summer swimming pool.

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Would you say you are a different person in Berlin? A different translator? And if yes, in what way?

I feel more serious, sometimes more melancolic. I feel contaminated by the gravity of life, which seems to weight on everybody's shoulders, here. I admire the Berliners and the Germans for it. And sometimes it makes me sad. Sometimes I feel like a child among adults. In Berlin, for the first time of my life, I could answer the question "What do you do for a living?" by "I'm a writer".

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Which existing literary work do you wish you had written?

Darkness at noon, from Arthur Koestler.