Die Verbliebenen vom Tempelfeld:  Novel Reading & Conversation with Ariel Magnus (LitFest 2025)

In his novel Die Verbliebenen vom Tempelfeld, the Argentinian-born author Ariel Magnus tells a story of friendship, migration, and the unique atmosphere of Tempelhofer Feld: a place once remembered as the “Hitler Airport” and today reimagined as an urban utopia. At its center is Jamil, a young refugee from Syria who has become stranded in the “Tempohomes.” Together with the Argentinian Santiago, the eccentric gardener Mr. Schwarz, the Israeli pretzel baker Yehonatan, and the freedom fighter Elenya, he discovers a piece of Berlin shaped by freedom, anarchy, and unexpected encounters.

The protagonists drift through their days, plotting a film project, debating migration, urban planning, and social fault lines—while reflecting the contradictory, vibrant spirit of Berlin itself. “I love this novel for its humor, for the deliberately circling motion of its storytelling, for its linguistic originality, and for its composite perspective on the present, local but not strictly German” says Andreas Martin Widmann about the book.

Part of LitFest 2025 at Bard College Berlin

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Ariel Magnus is a novelist, essayist, and literary translator. He grew up in Buenos Aires, studied Romance languages and philosophy in Heidelberg and Berlin, and has written for publications across Latin America as well as for the taz and Spiegel Online. His novels include Das zweite Leben des Adolf Eichmann (2021), Die Schachspieler von Buenos Aires (2018), and Zwei lange Unterhosen der Marke Hering (2012). His book Ein Chinese auf dem Fahrrad (Un chino en bicicleta) won the international La Otra Orilla Prize and has been translated into numerous languages. He lives between Buenos Aires and Berlin. Die Verbliebenen vom Tempelfeld (2025) is the first of his novels written in German. 

For more information, e-mail [email protected].

Time: 8:00 pm – 9:00 pm CET/GMT+1

Location: Julie Johnson Kidd Hall (Waldstraße 15, 13156 Berlin)

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