"No Beautiful Land" is what the excerpt from the novel manuscript by Patrick Findeis is called. The German author, a favourite of Burkhard Spinnen, was the first person whose text the jury found to be totally convincing on the first day of readings.

The moderator Dieter Moor's commentary summed it up best when he said, "You can't really say that this is another instance where an author had to suffer!"

Mangold: "Soap Opera Formats would be more contemporary"

Ijoma Mangold was the first to express a number of reservations: it's quite clear that this author knows how to write but his story does have its share of psychological cliches. "Clearly, the rural world portrayed here, or, put better, its mirroring in the media is no longer part of social reality, but the soap opera formats of today could probably present a more topical solution to this refined way of looking at the problems of the rural milieu."

Ursula März: "Congratulations!"

Ursula März said she had a similar experience when reading it. The reality of today is more the of the "Farmer wants a wife" kind and, in this respect, his text could be regarded as being anachronistic in nature. But she greatly emphasized the fact that a great, tragic figure is portrayed here who lacks all forms of consolation. "Congratulations!"

"Masterly, Musical and top-class"

For Andre Vladimir Heiz, Findeis is "a real discovery." "The text is authoritarian and it repelled me to some extent." And that, according to Heiz, compelled him to respect the text. "Absolutely masterly, musical and top-class" were only a few of the attributes Heiz accorded to the text. However, his final set of comments, which he uttered in his own Swiss dialect of German, will remain an eternal mystery for everyone who is not Swiss German. As for Daniela Strigl, she said that the text contains all the characteristics of "evil, hardcore literature" interspersed with "drugs, homosexuality and satellite dishes." In her opinion, it's a real tour-de-force.

Klaus Nüchtern became wary as he found himself enjoying the text, which perhaps has something to do with its "exotic" nature. This exotic aspect was "very well done" and, all in all, it is a text full of "suggestive rhythm." Not many would beg to differ.

"An Amazing Literary Achievement"

For once, Burkhard Spinnen did not have to defend his own position. He also said that, even though he did not like the subject matter because he himself had grown up in the midst of "farms that were dying off", a "dying culture," this was of secondary importance. "The manner in which this is done - it is a great literary achievement!" Spinnen said. None of his colleagues could find any reason to disagree.

Patrick Findeis`Text