Cat Person by Kristen Roupenian : Only for us

It goes without saying that the construction group, distanz Verlag, after he had acquired the German rights to Kristen Roupenians short stories, now with the title "Cat Person" on the market – and not, for example, with the same as the original, "You know You want this". Because in the "New Yorker", first published in the short story "Cat Person" about the meeting and crashed love affair between the 20-year-old Margot and the 34-year-old Robert Roupenian had the end of 2017, a spectacular success, Published shortly after the Weinstein's revelations, she developed the social media for millions of Renner, was shared, read and fiercely debated.

"Cat Person" became, on the one hand for the ultimate #MeToo-narrative, because Robert is at the end of straight and right male thing. And you don't know how you could escape from this out of him. The easiest way to not feel, to bring the Sex with him quickly: "The Problem was that he could not force you to do anything, what she wanted. Rather that, if this was not now to stop, after all, what she had done, so it came to this, there is lousy and cranky would look like.“

Almost all of the stories in the volume demonstrate, what a narrative, the 36-year-old author's talent.

on the Other hand, in this narrative expresses very well how nowadays relationships are beginning to emerge, especially via social media. And as you seem to be digital first, wonderful sound, to fail, then the analog: "you didn't know much about him, because they shared never about personal things, but if two or three jokes were in a row, there was an exuberance, as if they danced together." Roupenian, it succeeds in "Cat Person" perfectly, the ambivalence represent just of your much younger Narrator. This is Robert in many ways, in matters of education, taste, even sexual experience, but think about it. However, Margot does not oppose the usual relationship dynamics ("We are in love and will probably marry soon", she tells her parents), and gets angry at the end, to him not directly to the dump; take a friend.

Now, there was some skepticism about whether the unknown Kristen Roupenian, who studied at Harvard University, African literature, with a "Cat Person" is not only a inspired, possibly autobiographical – literary luck, had landed a hit. And it was displayed for the first volume of stories, and a novel equal to a million advance advance. But all of the stories in the volume demonstrate what a narrative talent, the 36-year-old author. The time for stretching, then back to fast long periods of time-bridging, through the installation of a couple of surreal moments, she understands it well, a variety of forces and power relations between the sexes, to emphasize, to questions of morality and the often translucent Evil and immorality of each individual of each of them. And that is smart and entertaining.

The figures are hit on Tinder on the go, or mentally, you are self-centered and narcissistic

For example there is a "Bad Boy" couple seduces a friend for Threesome Sex and day-to-day of a sadist; or the "Sin", the bite of as a child other children, even as adults, can't leave (what you understand), and finally a attractive sexist superiors gets: "Ellie, however, didn't want to sleep with him. She wanted to bite him, firm bite.“ Or the best of Friends, the celebrations in "The Boy at the Pool" a bachelorette party. For this, they hire a washed-up B-Movie actor that you have in your youth due to a Pool-Sex scene in one of his movies, adored. Something Shabby has this Scenery in the luxury hotel anyway, this misery of the eternally measly happiness desire. But as Kristen Roupenian is a stage for the interactions between one of the women who hired him and the cast, as on the one hand, the bad Conscience and the expectation is on him and the alleged Knowledge of him describes a class of its own: "He's doing exactly what she wanted to avoid: He and Taylor to the monkey."

Many of the characters in these stories do not would like to lead a different life, but you know how to do it. You are hitting on Tinder on the go, or mentally, you are supposedly nice men, supposedly 'nice' women, in the sense of "näätt", you table are self-centered and narcissistic. And even if Roupenian told a fairy tale, as in "The mirror of the bucket and the old bones" about a Princess who loves only yourself and your face, or a Stephen King-like Mystery story conjured by a woman and held captive man in the basement, one has always the impression, she reported directly from the presence of the current difficulties faced by many people, with self and others. And these difficulties are certainly not just generation, but typical of the time.

How was that with the love, as it brings one of Roupenians characters to the point: it is a wondrous chameleon. And: "don't you See that I'm only doing this for us!"

"Cat Person" by Kristen Roupenian The guy with the cats

Kristen Roupenian : Cat Person. Stories. From the American of Nella Beljan and Friederike Schilbach. Distanz Verlag, Berlin 2019. 284 pages, 20 €.