Arnon Grunberg

Crepe

Despair and happiness

This afternoon I went to a high school in Lyon to speak with a couple of students and their literature teachers about my novella “Monkey Grabbing Hold of Happiness".
I decided to speak in French, and although I don’t doubt that I spoke French like a barbarian I was happy to engage in a conversation with the intelligent and sharp students in French.
Afterwards I had a crepe at a café in the old city of Lyon. I thought of my new novel, horses and Büchner. Happiness and despair are so close to each other; sometimes it is hard to distinguish between the two.