At the center of Willi Achten's novel "The Uniqueness of Life" are Simon and Vinzenz, two brothers from a village in the Rhineland. Right from the first pages, it becomes clear: Vinzenz is seriously ill. While Simon accompanies his brother during this difficult time and tries to be there for him, the novel recounts their shared youth in the 1980s through flashbacks.

A time when it was the other way around: it was Vinzenz who protected Simon in many situations. These are memories of orchards, bike rides, and little pranks — of a youth where the biggest problem was often the nonsense one had done. Against the backdrop of a village threatened by brown coal mining, Willi Achten unfolds a dense picture of growing up in the countryside. Of family, loss, and the great changes that slowly inscribe themselves into life. Thirty years later, the brothers face another challenge. Hospital corridors, doctor conversations — a world they stumble into unprepared, while outside, everyday life simply continues.

"The Uniqueness of Life" is a novel about the love for a person who has always been there. A novel that makes palpable how hard it is to let go — and how precious the memories are that remain.

"The Uniqueness of Life" is published by Piper. 224 pages. ISBN: 978-3-492-07285-4