Nino Haratishvili’s »Das achte Leben (Für Brilka)« is about an epos on the rise and fall of communism.Yet it is also about trag­ edies and triumphs, love and hate, betrayal and rebellious spirit. The result: the family story of the Jaschis, interwoven into the history of an entire century. Haratischwili grew up in Georgia, and has been living in Hamburg since 2003. She writes in German. This outsider’s perspective is represented stylistically in his words.