Tomer Dotan-Dreyfus
Author · Poet · Translator
Tomer Dotan-Dreyfus, born in Haifa in 1987, has lived in Berlin since 2011 as a freelance author, poet and translator, writing in Hebrew and German. He studied comparative literature and philosophy at the Freie Universität Berlin, in Vienna and at the Université Paris VIII.
His essay “Meine Forschung zum O” was published by Gans Verlag in 2022. His debut novel “Birobidschan” (Voland & Quist, 2023) was longlisted for the German Book Prize. It was followed in 2025 by “Keinheimisch. Kindheit in Israel, Leben in Deutschland” (Propyläen) and in 2026 by his second novel, “Gavdos” (Voland & Quist).
His writing has appeared in Süddeutsche Zeitung, taz, Berliner Zeitung and der Freitag, among others.
Books
All books are published in German. They can be ordered from Autorenwelt, a bookshop that gives authors a share of every sale.
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2026
Buy at Autorenwelt
Gavdos
On the Greek island of Gavdos lives a commune of Russian scientists who believe they are immortal. The journalist Gilad travels there to write about them and gradually loses the line between reality and fiction.
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2025
Buy at Autorenwelt
Keinheimisch
A family history in the shadow of the Holocaust, and at the same time an exploration of Israel’s founding history, the occupation and the question of where a Jew can belong today.
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2023
Buy at Autorenwelt
Birobidschan
A novel about a Jewish socialist utopia in the Russian Far East, told in the tradition of Yiddish shtetl stories.
Longlisted for the German Book Prize 2023
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2022
Buy at Autorenwelt
Meine Forschung zum O
A literary investigation of the letter O in various works.
Events
Readings, talks and courses. Events are in German unless noted.
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Thu, 5 Nov 2026
7 pmReading from “Keinheimisch”
Club Voltaire, Kleine Hochstraße 5, Frankfurt am Main · Moderated by Alexander Leipold · in cooperation with DiEM25 -
Thu, 12 Nov 2026
6:30 pmReading from “Keinheimisch”
Café Storch im Familienzentrum, Hauptstraße 89, 64625 Bensheim · Register -
Sun, 29 Nov 2026
7 pmAnti-Zionismus: eine jüdische Geschichte
Benjamin Moser in conversation with Tomer Dotan-Dreyfus · series “Als gäbe es Morgen” · Roter Salon, Volksbühne Berlin · in English -
Fri, 5 Feb 2027
Reading from “Keinheimisch”
Hamburg · series “Räume der (Un-)Zugehörigkeit” by Flüchtlingsrat Hamburg
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Thu, 17 Sep 2026
Reading from “Gavdos”
Literaturhaus Hannover · Moderated by Henrik Szántó
Reviews
What critics have said about the books. Quotes are given in the original German.
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leseschatzHauke Harder · 12.10.2026
„Ein irrer und spaßiger Ritt durch Zeit, Raum, Literatur, Wissen und Ideen.“
Read review → -
Hannoversche Allgemeine ZeitungRonald Meyer-Arlt · 18.09.2026
„Es macht Spaß, das Buch zu lesen; das bisschen Lebenszeit, das man für die Lektüre braucht, ist gut investiert. Denn nach der Lektüre ist man klüger und – was den eigenen Tod angeht – auch ein wenig gelassener.“
Read review →
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literaturkritik.deMartin Schönemann · 11.02.2026
„Er ist ein Autor von bewundernswerter Aufrichtigkeit.“
Read review → -
Der StandardBert Rebhandl · 05.10.2025
„Tomer Dotan-Dreyfus schlägt mit einem herausragenden Buch eine Lücke in die Verhärtungen, in denen Israel in Palästina gefangen ist.“
Read review →
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Frankfurter Allgemeine ZeitungElena Witzeck · 18.09.2023
„Es klingt wild und unermesslich wie der Wind, der über die Tundra fegt und durch die Tiefen der menschlichen Seele.“
Read review → -
Die ZeitKatharina Teutsch · DIE ZEIT Nr. 33/2023
„Am Ende ist ihm eine Erzählung gelungen, die, je länger man sie liest, desto anziehender wird. […] Der Hunger nach diesem Roman ist gewaltig.“
Read review → -
Deutschlandfunk KulturKatharina Teutsch · 28.06.2023
„Dotan-Dreyfus hat diese in erzählerisch starken, witzigen Episoden und rätselhaften Bildern wiederaufleben lassen.“
Read review → -
DeutschlandfunkCarsten Hueck · 11.04.2023
„‚Birobidschan‘ ist sein Debütroman. Und was für einer. […] Tomer Dotan-Dreyfus ist anspruchsvoll, witzig und experimentierfreudig.“
Read review → -
Der TagesspiegelMarina Klimchuk · 28.03.2023
„Sie leben, sterben, halluzinieren, philosophieren, demonstrieren, betrügen und lieben sich in der sibirischen Flüsternis in großartiger diasporischer Selbstverständlichkeit.“
Read article →
Articles
Essays and pieces in newspapers and magazines, mostly in German. New texts also appear on my Substack.
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Zionismus kann nicht links sein
13.05.2026
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Nicht so defensiv! Wie Elif Eralp sich zum Antisemitismus-Vorwurf verhalten sollte
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Wann gilt die Ausladung jüdischer Künstler als antisemitisch – und wann nicht?
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Wieso wird ausgerechnet uns linken Juden vorgeworfen, Antisemitismus zu schüren?
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Warum Antisemitismus auch in Zeiten des Gaza-Genozids gefährlich in die Irre führt
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In Deutschland ist das jüdische politische Denken geregelt
ak 708 · 09.10.2024
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„Warum ich in Deutschland nicht einheimisch bin“
YouTube · Nullpunkt – mit Hanno HauensteinWhen you play the video, it is loaded from YouTube and data is transferred to YouTube (Google). Watch on YouTube
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„Childhood in Israel, Life in Germany“
YouTube · Mad in Germany with James Jackson · in EnglishWhen you play the video, it is loaded from YouTube and data is transferred to YouTube (Google). Watch on YouTube
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„Keinheimisch“
radio3 (rbb) · Interview by Matthias Bertsch on “Keinheimisch” · 29.03.2026 -
„Ich bin kein Nahostexperte, aber diskussionsbereit“
Deutschlandfunk Kultur -
»Vielleicht ist es ein Kibbuz«
analyse & kritik (ak 699) · Interview by Nelli Tügel on “Birobidschan” · 12.12.2023 -
„Der einzige Ort mit Jiddisch als Amtssprache“
taz · Interview by Petra Schellen on “Birobidschan” · 15.06.2023
Keinheimisch – Podcast
All episodes of the podcast will appear here.
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7 Nov 2026
Episode 1: Michael
Released on 7 November 2026
Learn Hebrew
Hebrew as a language that is not national: first the letters and vowels, then texts from the Jewish diaspora and critical texts of today.
- Where
- Online
- Start
- From 16 November 2026
- Days
- Monday, Wednesday, Friday
- Length
- 50 minutes per lesson
- Format
- Single lessons or packages
I teach Hebrew as a language that is not national: a language that existed before Zionism and will exist after it.
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Level 1
Letters and vowels
First we learn the letters and the vowels. In Hebrew, vowels are not letters of their own but signs placed below and above the letters.
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Level 2
Texts from the diaspora
Then we practise and deepen the language with texts from the Jewish diaspora. Hebrew was the language of prayer, law and poetry across Europe, West Asia and North Africa.
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Level 3
Hebrew today
Today Hebrew is also used in news outlets critical of Zionism, and critical literature, poems, short stories and novels exist and are still being written.
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Your path
An individual plan
Together we discuss which direction you want to take: which texts to read, and whether to go through them slowly. From this we build an individual plan.
Prices
- Single lesson1 lesson of 50 minutes€40Book
- 5-lesson package€36 per lesson€180Buy package
- 10-lesson package€35 per lesson€350Buy package
Packages are bought as credit and deducted automatically with each booking. Please log in to your account when you book. The booking pages are in German.
Contact
For readings, press enquiries, Hebrew lessons or anything else, feel free to write to me using this form.
Legal notice
Information pursuant to § 5 DDG (German Digital Services Act)
Tomer Dotan-Dreyfus
c/o Autorenglück #33849
Albert-Einstein-Straße 47
02977 Hoyerswerda
Germany
Contact
Email: tomer.dotan@egs.edu
or via the contact form.
Responsible for content pursuant to § 18 (2) MStV
Tomer Dotan-Dreyfus, address as above.
Image credits
Portrait photo: © Shai Levy
Liability for links
This website contains links to external third-party websites whose content I have no control over. The respective provider or operator is always responsible for the content of linked pages.
Privacy policy
Controller
Tomer Dotan-Dreyfus, address see legal notice.
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