author
Grethe Auer
1871–1940
A Swiss-Austrian novelist and storyteller, she drew on years spent in Morocco to write vivid fiction shaped by travel, memory, and close observation. Her work ranges from short stories to novels and later memoirs, giving readers a window into several worlds at once.
1 Audiobook
Gabrielens Spitzen: Zwei Novellen
by Grethe Auer
About the author
Born in Vienna on June 25, 1871, Margarethe Emma "Grethe" Auer grew up in an intellectual family and later studied in Bern. She is generally described as a Swiss-Austrian writer, and sources note that she was the daughter of the architect Hans Wilhelm Auer.
From 1898 to 1904, she lived in Morocco, an experience that strongly influenced her writing. That period inspired works including Marokkanische Erzählungen and, later, Ibn Chaldun. Her writing is often noted for turning travel and lived experience into literary material.
Auer later married the archaeologist Bruno Gustav Güterbock and is also found under the name Grethe Güterbock. She died in Berlin on July 16, 1940. Her memoir Wenn ich mein Leben betrachte--: Wien, Bern, Marokko, Berlin reflects the wide arc of her life across cities and cultures.