Georgi Gospodinov: Time is Out to Get Us

Thomas Mann argued there’s nothing ‘actual’ about time: humans don’t possess an organ that can sense it. Award-winning Bulgarian novelist Georgi Gospodinov plays with this idea in Time Shelter, beautifully translated into English by Angela Rodel. In the novel, an institution offers treatment for Alzheimer’s sufferers, allowing patients to be transported to a different decade. Gospodinov joins us to discuss the result, a masterful meditation on nostalgia and memory and their influence on the present.

Book Festival News

Celebrating the 2024 Book Festival Celebrating the 2024 Book Festival
Monday 26 August

Enjoying this event? You can help us produce more like it.

Donate

Share

Watch more

Richard Holloway - 2009 launch video Richard Holloway - 2009 launch video The launch of the 2009 Edinburgh International Book Festival programme was held in the Signet Library in Edinburgh on 11 June… John Byrne (2011 event) John Byrne (2011 event) Painter and set designer, playwright and novelist - one of Scotland's great polymaths talks about his extraordinary life and work… Interview - Omid Djalili (2014) Interview - Omid Djalili (2014) Acclaimed comedian and actor Omid Djalili talks about his joyously funny memoir about growing up as an Iranian in London in this interview at the 2014 Edinburgh International Book Festival. You can also watch his sold-out Book Festival event, filmed live… Too Much Information? Too Much Information? The downing of Malaysian Airlines Flight MH17 over Ukraine in 2014 was an event shrouded in misinformation. With reporters far from the location, misleading information put out by governments, and scant first-hand accounts, how did journalists determine… Peter Scott-Morgan: Rewiring Humanity Peter Scott-Morgan: Rewiring Humanity The first sign that something was not right came to scientist Dr Peter Scott-Morgan when he was getting out of the bath – no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't manage to shake the water from his feet. Not long after, he was diagnosed with MND (Motor… Éric Vuillard & Mark Polizzotti with Amelia Gentleman Éric Vuillard & Mark Polizzotti with Amelia Gentleman Writer and film-maker Éric Vuillard was catapulted to fame in his native France when he won the Prix Goncourt in 2017 for his novel The Order of the Day, set in Austria in the lead-up to the Second World War. This also began the working relationship… Chris Brookmyre talks to Brian Taylor at the Edinburgh International Book Festival Chris Brookmyre talks to Brian Taylor at the Edinburgh International Book Festival Sixteen years on from the death of young Niamh on a holiday in Portugal, the glamorous Temple clan hold a fateful family reunion in Fallen Angel, Chris Brookmyre’s new standalone thriller. For Amanda, a neighbouring nanny, fascination gives way to… Viet Thanh Nguyen: Through the Eyes of a Vietnamese Refugee Viet Thanh Nguyen: Through the Eyes of a Vietnamese Refugee In 1975, at the age of four, Viet Thanh Nguyen fled from Vietnam with his family. Like so many others, these refugees from their war-torn country ended up in America. Fortunately, Nguyen is blessed with a stellar command of the written word and has… Outriders Africa: Tsitsi Dangarembga & Nadine Aisha Jassat | Edinburgh International Book Festival Outriders Africa: Tsitsi Dangarembga & Nadine Aisha Jassat | Edinburgh International Book Festival In 2017 the Edinburgh International Book Festival supported ten writers to travel on journeys across the Americas. This was Outriders – an ambitious exploration of the idea that in shifting, disorienting times, a writer can make a unique contribution to… Aidan O'Rourke, James Robertson & Kit Downes at the Edinburgh International Book Festival Aidan O'Rourke, James Robertson & Kit Downes at the Edinburgh International Book Festival In 2013, James Robertson wrote a story every day of the year, each 365 words long. Then, Scottish fiddler Aidan O’Rourke wrote a tune a day as a musical response. 2019 marks the next chapter: O’Rourke launches Volume 2 of the music; the trio created a new…