# Event Details - **Event Name**: Book Launch & Discussion – Navid Kermani: "In the Other Direction Now." - **Event Start and End Date**: Wed, 14 Oct, 2026 at 07:00 pm – Wed, 14 Oct, 2026 at 08:00 pm (+01:00) - **Event Description**: Hear directly from Navid Kermani – one of Germany’s most celebrated writers and foremost public intellectuals!About this EventCome to the Goethe-Institut London for the launch of the English translation of Navid Kermani’s (Armchair Traveller, Haus Publishing, 2026) [dt. “In die andere Richtung jetzt: Eine Reise durch Ostafrika” (C.H. Beck, 2024)] translated by the acclaimed Tony Crawford.‘Kermani is a great reporter – curious, open, and tireless. – Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung‘Among the most thoughtful intellectual voices in Germany today’ – The New York Review of BooksNavid Kermani will be joined in conversation by Simukai Chigudu Associate Professor of African Politics at the Oxford Department of International Development and Fellow of St Antony’s College, Oxford University. Simukai is broadly interested in the politics of global health and epidemics, race and identity, citizenship and activist movements, with a regional focus on Africa and the African diaspora. His most recent book was by The Bodley Head and Crown in March 2026._______________________________________________________________________________Travelling from Madagascar to the Sudan, Navid Kermani found peoples and cultures in flux.In the Nuba Mountains, people are enduring war; residents of Nairobi inhabit a city shaped by colonialism; in southern Madagascar, farmers and fishers struggle with the first drought and famine to be attributed directly to climate change. As China and the West compete for scarce resources and wealthy Arab countries exert their influence on religion and culture, colonial crimes are perpetuated in extractive economies and unaccountable governance.Yet the Eastern Africa that comes to life under Kermani’s critical and sensitive eye is that of the farmers and professionals, artists and soldiers, parents and children, priests and imams. Traditional music, Ethiopian jazz, and Sufi ritual songs are powerful currents of identity; faith is a unifying force in contested areas; violence and oppression are answered with perseverance and resistance.In the Other Direction Now is an essential work of human observation and under­standing that reflects on issues of the present moment, and on the fundamental questions of life, in a region too often excluded from the world’s gaze.Navid Kermani is one of Germany’s most celebrated writers. His many awards include the Kleist Prize, the Hannah Arendt Prize, the Friedrich Hölderlin Prize, the Peace Prize of the German Publishers’ Association and, most recently, the Thomas Mann Prize.Simukai Chigudu is Associate Professor of African Politics at the University of Oxford. He has conducted research in Zimbabwe, Uganda, The Gambia, and Tanzania, and has publications in several leading social science and medical journals. He won the Theodore J. Lowi First Book Award for his account of the 2008/09 cholera outbreak in Zimbabwe [The Political Life of an Epidemic: Cholera, Crisis and Citizenship in Zimbabwe (Cambridge University Press, 2020)]. Prior to working in academia, Simukai was a medical doctor in the UK’s National Health Service. His most recent book Chasing Freedom: Coming of Age at the End of Empire was by The Bodley Head and Crown in March 2026.Tony Crawford’s translations have twice been shortlisted for the Helen and Kurt Wolff Translator’s Prize. His translation of Navid Kermani’s Wonder Beyond Belief won the Schlegel-Tieck Prize in 2018.More events: Stay updated!Follow us on sociel media: Sign up to our cultural newsletter: - **Event URL**: https://allevents.in/london/book-launch-and-discussion-navid-kermani-in-the-other-direction-now/100002000637088387 - **Event Categories**: art, health-wellness, literary-art, nonprofit, sports, music, entertainment, science-fair - **Interested Audience**: - total_interested_count: 0 - **Event Highlights**: - Duration: 1 hour - Location: Goethe-Institut London - Languages: English ## Ticket Details - **Ticket Price Range**: min: 3, max: 6, currency: GBP ## Event venue details - **city**: London - **state**: EN - **country**: United Kingdom - **location**: Goethe-Institut London - **lat**: 51.4992331 - **long**: -0.1743108000000575 - **full address**: Goethe-Institut London, 50 Princes Gate, London, United Kingdom ## Event gallery - **Alt text**: Book Launch & Discussion – Navid Kermani: "In the Other Direction Now." - **Image URL**: https://cdn-az.allevents.in/events5/banners/6483855c8e0c0a7af968505ce5644b982dc3a30450fb6e40d778a8e1b51ac768-rimg-w1200-h600-dcf8f8f8-gmir.jpg?v=1789502944 ## FAQs - **Q**: When and where is Book Launch & Discussion - Navid Kermani: "In the Other Direction Now." being held? - **A:** Book Launch & Discussion - Navid Kermani: "In the Other Direction Now." takes place on Wed, 14 Oct, 2026 at 07:00 pm to Wed, 14 Oct, 2026 at 08:00 pm at Goethe-Institut London, 50 Princes Gate, London, United Kingdom. - **Q**: Who is organizing Book Launch & Discussion - Navid Kermani: "In the Other Direction Now."? - **A:** Book Launch & Discussion - Navid Kermani: "In the Other Direction Now." is organized by Goethe-Institut London. - **Q**: Who is this event for? Is it right for me? - **A:** Book Launch & Discussion - Navid Kermani: "In the Other Direction Now." is ideal for art lovers, collectors, creatives, and anyone inspired by visual arts, installations, and exhibitions. Whether you're a first-time attendee or a longtime enthusiast in London, this event is thoughtfully curated to deliver a standout experience worth every moment. 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