Was in Zwei Koffer Passt, Klosterjahre

One day Veronika Peters came to an unusual decision: to enters a convent. Motivated by the need to give her life a deeper meaning, of a life more than just the accumulation of possessions, she packed her bags and started on an adventure with an uncertain end. In this marvelous book, she tells, laconically and with a deep honesty, of the light and the dark sides of cloistered life - of the inner and outer conflicts that she had to overcome and of the limitations that are a part of a nun's life. She reports as well on the wonderful human encounters that she experienced there, the depth and beauty of religious rituals, and joy and inner peace. Twelve years later she packed her bags once again - to begin a completely new life in Berlin. "What Fits in Two Suitcases" is a very personal book with which the author, with equal amounts of humour and contemplation, shares her fascinating and highly unusual experiences. She gives readers a look behind the walls of an unknown world, while providing an impressive testimony of a young women's search for beauty and spiritual fulfillment. The search for meaning is a crucial theme in modern society. Veronika Peters' sympathetic and deeply human book will enthuse readers who are concerned with the question of having a fulfilled existence. "What Fits in Two Suitcases" is a wonderful reading pleasure as well for all who are interested in the unusual experiences of a courageous and clever woman. Press "Veronika Peters has written a very remarkable book about her nearly twelve years in a convent and her life afterwards. It is about being true to one's own life path - and about the happiness one should be allowed to miss out on just as little as this truestory." Brigitte "It is an astounding book, maintaining its tension just as you believe you can see the end." Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung "Veronika Peters' experience-packed novel is neither a paean nor a farewell to convent life. Instead it tells, without pathos, of the snares and also the luminosity of cloistered life and action based on Christian belief." 3sat Kulturzeit "The author ... provides insight into a hermetically sealed world. It is exciting, surprising, and at times amusing." Stern Author Veronika Peters, born in 1966, spent her childhood in Germany and Africa, where her father was a teacher. When she was fifteen she left home, became trained as an educator and worked in a psychiatric home for youth. She entered a convent in 1987. After nearly 12 years she left the order and moved to Berlin, where she worked on her photography and writing. "What Fits in Two Suitcases" is her first book.