I grew up near Basel, Switzerland.
After many years of teaching as a primary school teacher, I trained further to become a theatre educator and storyteller. Since then, I have been writing and staging plays, as well as leading workshops on “Storytelling” and “Creative Writing” for students.
I live with my family in London.
“The Interpreter” is my debut novel. The book originated from the idea of recounting my father’s wartime experiences. After extensively researching the historical events of 1942/43 in Italy, I decided to expand the story and include the whole family. The result was a novel with fictional characters and plots, yet one that incorporates my father’s real experiences.
As a descendant of an Italian immigrant family, I feel deeply connected to the country. It was important to me to weave elements of Italian culture into the story. The excerpts from poetry and music are meant to reflect their rich cultural heritage.
Many thousands of soldiers were fleeing through Italy at the same time as my father.
The Interpreter is dedicated to them.
Viele tausende Soldaten waren zur selben Zeit wie mein Vater in Italien auf der Flucht. “Der Dolmetscher” ist ihnen gewidmet.