The Diplomatic SOCIETY editorial team has once again put together a diverse selection of book recommendations for you – from traditional Persian recipes and the lyrics of legendary songwriter Bob Dylan to a “family tree of madness” exploring a troubled family history.
Pistazien & Rosenduft
Linda Wolfsgruber — Mandelbaum Verlag
Informal English: Pistachios & the Scent of Roses
A beautifully designed book about Persian hospitality and the diversity of Persian cuisine. It features recipes and visual interpretations by eleven Iranian female artists, collected by Linda Wolfsgruber herself – a freelance illustrator and book designer. Through these works, she explores the history and significance of Iran’s culinary traditions.
The Midnight Train
Matt Haig — Droemer
Which moments of your life would you choose to experience again, if you could? Wilbur, having reached the end of his life, meets Agnes Bagdale, the elderly woman whose bookshop was his refuge as a child and the starting point for his own career as a bookseller. Then a mysterious train awaits him – and Agnes takes him on a journey back to the most significant moments of his life. A wonderful story about love, second chances and the transformative power of books.
The Midnight Train is the original English title of the novel; the German edition was published as Die Mitternachtsreise.
Lyrics
Bob Dylan, Heinrich Detering (editor) — Reclam
Few artists have shaped the linguistic world of rock music as profoundly as Bob Dylan. Heinrich Detering has curated lyrics from Dylan’s extensive body of work that represent the songwriter’s most important styles and creative periods. With essential notes, explanations of words, references to further reading and an afterword, this handy Reclam edition is an ideal companion for all Dylan fans.
Die zwei Leben des Arthur Rimbaud – Vom Kulturdichter zum Waffenhändler
Kersten Knipp — Herder
Informal English: The Two Lives of Arthur Rimbaud – From Cult Poet to Arms Dealer
A portrait of a man caught between genius, escape and self-transformation. Arthur Rimbaud was a cult poet who pushed the boundaries of traditional poetry and created works that would later inspire generations of Symbolists, Surrealists and artists. Yet at just 21, he suddenly stopped writing and travelled to Africa, where he traded in coffee, ivory and weapons and led a radically different life. Kersten Knipp offers new perspectives on Rimbaud’s little-known years in Africa. The current edition is published in German; a separate English-language edition could not be verified.
Botanik des Wahnsinns
Leon Engler — DuMont
Informal English: Botany of Madness
Leon Engler’s narrator looks back over 342 pages at a family tree of madness: his grandmother is bipolar and has attempted suicide twelve times, his grandfather is a regular patient at Steinhof, his mother is an alcoholic and his father suffers from depression. Growing up in a working-class district of Munich, he fears that he too will become mentally ill. Later, he does in fact end up in an institution – though as a psychologist. Working with his patients, he learns that a person is always more than their illness, and that listening is more important than diagnosing. Before long, he begins to ask: what exactly is a “normal” person?
An English sample of the novel is available under the title Botany of Madness, but a published English-language edition could not be verified
Irische Märchen
Käte Müller-Lisowski (editor) — Anaconda
Informal English: Irish Fairy Tales
German Celtic scholar and translator Käte Müller-Lisowski (†) first published a collection of Irish folk tales in 1923, which she translated herself. In a new 2026 edition, readers can immerse themselves in the adventures of the hero Fionn, travel to storm-battered islands and encounter mysterious creatures. Alongside humorous trickster and tall tales, the collection includes earthy folk stories whose imagination and richness continue to captivate readers today.
Warum wir uns nicht hassen
Olga Kosanović & Emil Brix — Amalthea
Informal English: Why We Don’t Hate Each Other
The generational divide is increasingly becoming a source of social conflict. Yet between the stereotypes of the “old white men” and “lazy young people”, there are also common ground and shared experiences worth discovering. Diplomat and historian Emil Brix and director Olga Kosanović (of Noch lange keine Lipizzaner) explore these possibilities in ten conversations, attempting to build bridges between generations.
The book was published in German by Amalthea in September 2026; an English-language edition could not be verified
Dieses unruhige Ich. Bachmann
Dieter Burdorf — C.H. Beck
Informal English: This Restless Self: Bachmann
“This restless self” was how Austrian writer Ingeborg Bachmann once described herself. In this biography, Dieter Burdorf approaches this self through recently discovered, eloquent correspondence. He portrays the many facets of Bachmann, who was deeply connected to the European cultural world, and whose relationships – including those with Paul Celan and Max Frisch – were always inseparably intertwined with both her life and her writing.
Dear Britain – Auf der Suche nach der Seele Großbritanniens
Annette Dittert — DuMont
Informal English: Dear Britain – In Search of the Soul of Britain
Annette Dittert spent almost two decades as an ARD correspondent in the United Kingdom and became a British citizen in 2025. In her latest book, she combines political analysis with personal experience, searching for the soul of Britain and asking: How does a democracy without a written constitution actually work? Why is the most permanent resident of Downing Street a cat? And what has changed for the British since Brexit? Entertaining and insightful.
The 2026 publication is a German-language edition; a separateEnglish-language edition could not be verified.
Buberlpartie
Petra Hartlieb — DuMont
Informal English: The Boys’ Club
A car crashes into a restaurant at a popular Viennese market. Chief Inspector Alma Oberkofler, who happens to be at the scene, manages to save the life of a kitchen assistant, but the restaurant owner Amon Cohen, journalist Sebastian Schmuck and a young waitress succumb to their injuries. Was it an attack targeting the Jewish restaurant owner, the left-wing journalist or the Ukrainian family living above the restaurant – or was it simply an accident?
Alma and her colleagues investigate every possible lead. What is certain is that the perpetrator, Albert Schotterer, was part of the far-right scene and had repeatedly been considered as a candidate for office in a government led by a right-wing populist party. Politicians are quick to reach their own conclusion and attempt to obstruct the investigation.
Villa Rivolta
Daniel Speck — Fischer
Informal English: Villa Rivolta
During Italy’s golden years, between La Dolce Vita and cultural revolution, Piero, the son of an automobile entrepreneur, and Valeria, the talented daughter of the household’s domestic worker, grow up together at Villa Rivolta in Milan. They promise each other that they will remain friends forever, while a family secret binds them even more closely together. But when Piero is forced to take over his father’s inheritance, Valeria falls in love with Flavio, the son of a Sicilian labourer – and nothing is ever the same again. A story of friendship, betrayal and an impossible love.