Tamara Štajner Explores Motherhood and Balkan Trauma in ‘Luft nach unten’
In her critically acclaimed second novel, «Luft nach unten» (published by Zsolnay in 2026), author, musician, and performer Tamara Štajner delivers a multi-layered exploration of a destructive mother-daughter relationship, transgenerational trauma, and the long shadows of the former Yugoslavia, according to reviews from major European cultural outlets.
The 39-year-old writer, who resides in Vienna and originates from Slovenia, constructed a narrative framework that spans multiple literary forms, moving from traditional prose and letters to WhatsApp chats, as reported by Michael Luisier. The novel centers on Iva, a protagonist who reflects the author’s background as a musician and expatriate.
A Journey to the Ohridsee and a Hidden Past
The narrative catalyst occurs when Iva travels back to her childhood home at the Ohridsee in modern-day North Macedonia, where her family once operated a hotel, following the death of her former nanny, Marija. Upon arriving at the cemetery, Iva discovers a startling discrepancy on the gravestone: two names inscribed together—Marija’s and that of a seven-year-old girl who died in the summer of 1989. This discovery opens a dark family secret and sets the stage for an examination of the region’s historical weight.
Literary critics have noted the deep resonance of these themes. Writing for the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung, Eva Goldbach observed that Štajner joins a literary tradition akin to Tove Ditlevsen and Annie Ernaux, using the lens of a single woman’s life to tell a universal story. Stephan Ozsváth of Rundfunk Berlin-Brandenburg (rbb) described the work as a tragic yet wildly comedic multi-layered novel addressing women’s fury, the hunger for life, and the secret versions of history passed down through generations.
Muttersein, Fertility Struggle, and Domestic Chaos
Parallel to her reckoning with Balkan history, Iva navigates a complicated life in Vienna. Her marriage to Felix is strained by an intense, unsuccessful desire to conceive a child, leading to scenes that Alexander Solloch of NDR Kultur and other critics highlight for their dry wit and emotional honesty. To escape the clinical stress of domestic fertility attempts, Iva maintains an unburdened affair with a married man who has no intention of leaving his wife.
At the emotional core of the book are the letters Iva writes from afar to her mother in Slovenia. The mother struggles with severe obesity, binge-eating episodes, and a hoarding lifestyle that leaves Iva alternating between revulsion and confusion. Rather than functioning as direct accusations, these letters read as complex declarations of love. Cultural critic Valerie Bäuerlein, writing in the Berliner Morgenpost, praised Štajner for addressing the complexities of the maternal instinct and motherhood in a way that is refreshingly devoid of societal myths.
Critical Acclaim and Literary Distinction
The novel has already achieved significant critical and commercial recognition prior to and following its official release. Two years prior to publication, «Luft nach unten» won the Kelag-Prize at the Ingeborg-Bachmann-Preis competition. Upon its publication, the 336-page novel secured the Exil-Literature Prize from the Vienna-based Exil association and climbed to the top of the ORF bestseller list.
Reviewers have repeatedly emphasized the unique musicality of Štajner’s prose. Cornelius Hell of Die Presse noted that the author possesses an independent linguistic sound that unfolds naturally without any artificial posturing, while Joachim Leitner of the Tiroler Tageszeitung highlighted Štajner’s flair for capturing raw, fiery outbursts of anger without losing narrative control.
Worth a look
