Und alle so still

Women lie down in the street. Motionless and silent. Exhausted and yet full of strength – strength for a voiceless outcry. At first, only a few women lie down in front of the local hospital. Over time, many more join them in other places in the city. They are women who defy society’s expectation that they should keep the care system running with tireless, underpaid and unpaid work. Women of different generations, raised in different living conditions and yet with similar expectations of themselves as women. Elin is a successful influencer. Nuri is in trouble and does underpaid, unfair jobs. Ruth works round the clock as a carer in hospital. Three life journeys and many more paths cross in this silent protest against a precarious system that is based on exploitation and overwork. What ensues is unparalleled chaos that makes it clear what would happen if women were to give up the jobs assigned to them and taken for granted and were to ask how traditions and conditions may be changed.

Mareike Fallwickl’s feminist social novel UND ALLE SO STILL has been nominated for the Swiss German Book Trade’s Favourite Book of 2025. Born in 1983, the Austrian author made her debut in 2018 with Dunkelgrün fast schwarz. With Das Licht ist hier viel heller (2019) and Die Wut, die bleibt (2022), she has developed into an author who champions female narrative voices with themes such as abuse of power, female self-determination, friendships and dependencies.