Yusuf Yeşilöz, born in 1964 in a Kurdish village in Central Anatolia (Turkey) and came to Switzerland as a refugee in 1987. From 1992-1995 he ran his own bookshop and published translations of Kurdish literature into German in his own publishing house Ararat. His first novel, Journey into the Dusk, was published in 1998 and was later followed by documentaries for Swiss television and 3sat. In his novels and films Yeşilöz deals with topics such as the search for identity and travel between cultures. He was a columnist for the cultural supplement of the Tagesanzeiger. Later also for the weekly newspaper WOZ. The author is married. He lives and works in Winterthur. Some of his novels have been translated into French, Italian, Spanish, Swedish and Turkish. His novel Hochzeitsflug is filmed by Gitta Gsell (Triluna Film Zurich). His novel “Nelkenblatt” was published in spring 2021 and “Der Libellenspiegel” in August 2024, both by Limmat Verlag.
Films
The Will to Participate, Documentary, Swiss Television, 2015; The Doner King, Documentary, Swiss Television and 3sat, 2013; Actually We Wanted to Return, Documentary, Swiss Television, 3sat and TSR, 2012; Music Love, Documentary, Swiss Television and 3sat, 2008; Between the Worlds, Documentary, Swiss Television, 3sat, TSR, 2006
