The Waterloo Centre for German Studies is pleased to announce the eight finalists for the WCGS Book Prize. The prize, valued at CAD $2,000, is for an author's first book in any area of German studies published in 2018.
The shortlist demonstrates the rich and diverse nature of German studies scholarship today. The Waterloo Centre for German Studies congratulates the authors on their fine achievement.
The finalists are:
Moritz von Brescius (Bern University), German Science in the Age of Empire: Enterprise, Opportunity and the Schlagintweit Brothers, (Cambridge University Press). This study explores the national, imperial and indigenous interests at stake in a major survey expedition undertaken by the German Schlagintweit brothers in South and Central Asia in the 1850s. Further information: https://uwaterloo.ca/centre-for-german-studies/2018-book-prize-finalist-moritz-von-brescius
Brendan Karch (Louisiana State University), Nation and Loyalty in a German-Polish Borderland: Upper Silesia, 1848–1960,(Cambridge University Press). This work traces nationalist activists' efforts to divide Upper Silesian communities, which were bound by their Catholic faith and bilingualism, into two 'imagined' nations. Further Information: https://uwaterloo.ca/centre-for-german-studies/2018-book-prize-finalist-brendan-karch
Molly Jean Loberg (California Polytechnic State University), The Struggle for the Streets of Berlin: Politics, Consumption, and Urban Space, 1914-1945, (Cambridge University Press). Who owns the street? In Germany, the First World War and 1918 Revolution transformed the city streets into the most important media for politics and commerce. Further Information: https://uwaterloo.ca/centre-for-german-studies/2018-book-prize-finalist-molly-loberg
Jennifer A. Miller (Southern Illinois University Edwardsville), Turkish Guest Workers in Germany: Hidden Lives and Contested Borders, 1960s to 1980s, (University of Toronto Press). This study tells the post-war story of Turkish "guest workers" whom West German companies recruited to fill their depleted ranks. Further Information: https://uwaterloo.ca/centre-for-german-studies/2018-book-prize-finalist-jennifer-miller
Diana M. Natermann (Leiden University), Pursuing Whiteness in the Colonies. Private Memories from the Congo Free State and German East Africa (1884-1914), (Waxmann). This book highlights the experiences and perceptions of colonisers and how they portrayed and re-interpreted their identities in Africa. Further Information: https://uwaterloo.ca/centre-for-german-studies/2018-book-prize-finalist-diana-m-natermann
Michael E. O’Sullivan (Marist College), Disruptive Power: Catholic Women, Miracles, and Politics in Modern Germany, 1918-1965, (University of Toronto Press). A study of a surprising revival of faith in Catholic miracles in Germany from the 1920s to the 1960s. Further Information: https://uwaterloo.ca/centre-for-german-studies/2018-book-prize-finalist-michael-e-osullivan
Robin Schuldenfrei (University of London), Luxury and Modernism: Architecture and the Object in Germany 1900-1933, (Princeton University Press). This beautifully illustrated book provides a new interpretation of modern architecture and design in Germany during the heyday of the Bauhaus and the Werkbund. Further Information: https://uwaterloo.ca/centre-for-german-studies/2018-book-prize-finalist-robin-schuldenfrei
Sarah Thomsen Vierra (Willamette University), Turkish Germans in the Federal Republic of Germany. Immigration, Space, and Belonging, 1961–1990. (Cambridge University Press). An exploration of the history of Turkish immigrants and their children from the early days of the post-war guest worker program to the formation of multi-generational communities. Further Information: https://uwaterloo.ca/centre-for-german-studies/2018-book-prize-finalist-sarah-thomsen-vierra
The winning book will be announced by mid-December 2019. For more information on the WCGS Book Prize, go to https://uwaterloo.ca/centre-for-german-studies/research-activities-and-opportunities/wcgs-book-prize. Please note that nominations for the WCGS Book Prize for books published in 2019 will open in the new year.