Buchklub

Charlotte von Mahlsdorf lived a century-long life. Born in 1928, between the two world wars, she wandered the city as a teenager for an antique dealer, collecting furniture from the Gründerzeit period. After the war, she personally hauled items through the ruins of Berlin in a cart, accumulating bric-a-brac and antiques, thus laying the foundation for her Gründerzeit museum, which she opened in 1960. She was entrusted with the Mahlsdorf estate, which she renovated herself and filled with her extensive collection. For decades, Charlotte enjoyed success as the director of her quaint yet dazzling museum, until a horde of neo-Nazis attacked a celebration at the estate in 1991. Before emigrating to Sweden for this reason, she wrote her remarkable memoir Ich bin meine eigene Frau, which was published in 1992 and made into a film by Rosa von Praunheim in the same year. A man stands by his wife: during the interwar period, the war, the postwar era, the division, and the reunification – a century indeed. This story takes us into an era that, despite all the adversities, was always comfortably furnished, lived by a true Berliner original.

Nils Philipp is an art and architecture educator as well as a poet, photographer and decorator. After gaining insightful experiences as a janitor, lifeguard and deli vendor, he now works, among other things, as a bookseller. While he is waiting for his breakthrough as writer or art director, he reads plenty and with pleasure.

About the Village Book Club
• Book lovers and bookworms have been meeting on a bimonthly basis to discuss works of fiction and non-fiction (novels, biographies, and essays) focused on or related to LGBTQIA+ themes and personalities.
• Anticipating insightful discussions, we choose the next book two months in advance.
• While the evening discussions are conducted in German, participants are welcome to read the selected books in their preferred language.
• Free event without registration