Thought Experiments on the Family

Monika Helfer creates 16 scenes from families in her mind games. She shows ways of starting a family, leaving it, destroying it and saving it.

The short but great stories deal with existential issues, turning and tipping points, love and separation, life and death, getting by and getting away. They move between directness and gentleness with many nuances and cannot be pinned down to one unambiguous reading. The ambiguity and uncertainty ensure that the family fates, which are described with empathy and a great deal of knowledge of human nature, continue to circle around in your head even after you have finished reading.