2267 ratings | 2070 reviews | avg rating:3.57

more photos (1)

#3 most followed
#2 best reviewers
#21 top reviewers
#10 top librarians

Meike’s Year In Books

Meike’s 2025 Year in Books

Take a look at Meike’s Year in Books, including some fun facts about their reading.

Go to Meike’s 2025 Year in Books

Meike Ulrike Stein’s Followers (5,032)

Meike’s Bookshelves

to-read (260)
currently-reading (5)
read (2427)
did-not-finish (1)
000-tbr (0)
2017-mbp (13)
2017-read (217)
2018-mbp (13)
2018-nba (8)
2018-read (255)
See all bookshelves »

Meike’s Friends (304)

Maryana

890 books | 216 friends

B. H.

2,059 books | 69 friends

Shadib Bin

603 books | 173 friends

Doug

9,203 books | 1,094 friends

Peter

1,941 books | 149 friends

Roman Clodia

4,511 books | 577 friends

Claire Lynn

467 books | 609 friends

Diane

147 books | 312 friends

More friends…

Meike Ulrike Stein

Goodreads Author

Born

Saarbrücken, Saarland, Germany

Website

https://papierstaupodcast.de/

Genre

Fiction, Nonfiction

Member Since

August 2016

URL

https://www.goodreads.com/meikereads

edit data

Meike Stein ist eine deutsche Journalistin und Literaturkritikerin. Nach ihrem Magisterabschluss in Medien-, Politik- und Anglistischer Literaturwissenschaft und einem Zertifikatsabschluss in Internationalem Journalismus in den USA hat sie ein trimediales Volontariat beim Norddeutschen Rundfunk in Hamburg absolviert. Zusammen mit Robin Schneevogt und Anika Falke betreibt sie "Papierstau Podcast", außerdem ist sie freie Mitarbeiterin bei SR Kultur und Referentin der Landesregierung. Und weil man auf einem M.A. bekanntlich nicht stehen kann, hat sie auch noch einen Master in Neuerer deutscher Literatur und ein Jurastudium beendet. ...more

Combine Editions
Meike Ulrike Stein’s books

Average rating: 4.75 · 4 ratings · 3 reviews · 1 distinct work

Travels With My Mother: Christian Krachts "Eurotrash" im Spiegel von Nickels und Greenes "Travels With My Aunt"

4.75 avg rating — 4 ratings

Rate this book

Clear rating

1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars

* Note: these are all the books on Goodreads for this author. To add more, click here.

Meike is Currently Reading

Meike is currently reading

One Aladdin Two Lamps

by Jeanette Winterson

bookshelves: currently-reading, uk

Rate this book

Clear rating

1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars

Meike said: " Winterson goes Sheherazade: "I can change the story because I am the story.” Let's read it!!

NOTES:
Listen, if a book takes itself THAT seriously, employing a declamatory style full of moral certainty, I expect complex, sharp, challenging thoughts - ok Winterson goes Sheherazade: "I can change the story because I am the story.” Let's read it!!

NOTES:
Listen, if a book takes itself THAT seriously, employing a declamatory style full of moral certainty, I expect complex, sharp, challenging thoughts - okay, even then the formal delivery would bother me, but to couple this sound with a bunch of banalities is really quite something. Winterson gives us a hybrid essay collection, structured around The Arabian Nights (One Thousand and One Nights): Short excerpts or references to the tales, told in a contemporary style, are followed by personal essays about all kinds of topics, and I couldn't help but feeling that the classic tales are stand-ins for the gospel followed by the sermon, and I was transported to a weird mass. But not a Catholic mass, mind you: There is no opulence, no incense, no drama, just Protest work ethic and sparseness. Pass me the sacramental wine, I want to drown my literary sorrows.

One main point Winterson addresses again and again, which is also the hinge to "The Arabian Nights", is the assumption that the world is made up of stories, and that creativity changes the world (not that she goes into the theory behind this, it's more of a superficial argument that sees narrative as a weapon against the ills she mentions, like anti-women politics). The modulation around this bothered me, because we should be way beyond this simplistic take by now: What MAGA does is also narration, so we need to ask how narration needs to relate to the real world, how we judge narration, because to just applaud the creative act itself is not only simplistic, but outright wild at this point. Then, we could also debate her on some issues: The fear for women's exclusive spaces, the lazy arguments regarding the perils of the digital world (TikTok bad), a dubious faith in AI.

Sure, these are opinion pieces, and the author's strong convictions are part of Winterson's style. The thing is though: this reader has always been bored by the likes of Bertolt Brecht, because of the didactic and ultimately condescending (that's my strong take :-)) approach of epic theater. When it comes to declaring personal truths, Winterson is the same, and I find that annoying. Let me explain: I like nuanced essays with authors that truly ponder complex issues as opposed to surface-level declarations that reduce complexity. Jesus, here's another strong take by yours truly: The urge to reduce complexity is relatable, but it is also the root of many problems society is facing today. And I feel like books like this one cater to readers that enjoy feeling like they and their opinions are correct, which is a fuzzy, cosy, and also very unproductive feeling. Winterson does not aim to convince anyone, she is preaching to the converted.

To what end? ...more "

16 hours, 57 min ago · see review

Meike is currently reading

Der Film

by Kristín Eiríksdóttir

bookshelves: currently-reading, iceland

Rate this book

Clear rating

1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars

Meike said: " Aaaahh, new Icelandic literature, let's go! ...more "

Jan 04, 2026 01:28AM · see review

Meike is currently reading

Crux

by Gabriel Tallent (Goodreads Author)

bookshelves: currently-reading, usa

Rate this book

Clear rating

1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars

Meike said: " Next year will be full of exciting new releases - let's start the highly anticipated new Gabriel Tallent! ...more "

Dec 30, 2025 11:29PM · see review

rss
Meike’s Recent Updates

Meike made a comment on her review of Half His Age " Left Coast Justin wrote: "I firmly believe that this novel will do more to protect teenagers from predatory grown men than all well-intended, clean ad ...more "
7 hours, 26 min ago · see review
Meike made a comment on her review of Flesh " Jennifer wrote: "This is how I feel every time I read John Williams’s Stoner. I agree with you. Books don’t owe us sympathetic characters, nor must th ...more "
7 hours, 27 min ago · see review
Meike made a comment on Madeline’s review of The Summer I Turned Pretty (Summer, #1) " Madeline wrote: "Honestly I kept rooting for Belly’s mom to start hooking up with Conrad instead. Like, okay Susannah, you want to be one big happy qu ...more "
10 hours, 58 min ago · see review
Meike rated a book it was amazing Lovers XXX by Allie Rowbottom (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
I really hope the publisher has the guts to submit this rather explicit feminist novel about the porn industry for some literary prizes, especially the Booker, because this is fantastic: Rowbottom tells the story of two friends, Jude and Winnie, who ...more
16 hours, 52 min ago · 48 likes · like · see review
Meike made a comment on MJ Nicholls’s review of Survive " "the breathless neurosis of the narrator (a common symptom of the later millennial / Gen Z with a conscience) is explored resonantly"- I don't know, s ...more "
17 hours, 53 min ago · see review
Meike rated a book really liked it Half His Age by Jennette McCurdy	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Don't underestimate the literary skill of former child actress Jennette McCurdy: This is a version of Lolita, but from Lolita's perspective, and it goes into very uncomfortable territory - which brought the chronically online without any media litera ...more
18 hours, 33 min ago · 71 likes · like · see review
Meike made a comment on her review of Lovers XXX " Patrick wrote: "Klingt super! Freue mich sehr auf das Buch, ist schon eine Weile auf meinem Wunschzettel. Jetzt nur noch warten bis Juni... :)" Das Buc ...more "
18 hours, 36 min ago · see review

More of Meike's books…

Meike’s Quotes

“By definition, you have to live until you die. Better to make that life as complete and enjoyable an experience as possible, in case death is shite, which I suspect it will be.”
― Irvine Welsh, Trainspotting

432 likes

“Live, travel, adventure, bless, and don't be sorry.”
― Jack Kerouac

5615 likes

“I love myself when I am laughing. . . and then again when I am looking mean and impressive.”
― Zora Neale Hurston, I Love Myself When I Am Laughing And Then Again When I Am Looking Mean & Impressive

1818 likes

“I do things like get in a taxi and say, "The library, and step on it.”
― David Foster Wallace, Infinite Jest

tags: books, infinite-jest

4216 likes

“A paranoid is someone who knows a little of what's going on. A psychotic is a guy who's just found out what's going on.”
― William S. Burroughs

606 likes

More of Meike’s quotes…

Meike’s Friend Comments

Comments (showing 1-5) post a comment »

date

newest »

message 5: by Jan

Feb 23, 2023 12:52PM

Thanks for friending, Meike!

reply | flag

message 4: by Meike

Jan 29, 2022 10:52AM

Joe wrote: "HI, Meike. I'm looking forward to discovering a few books out of my comfort zone and maybe picking up some German language if I'm not careful. Keep these book reports coming."

Thank you, Joe, I'm looking forward to talking books with you! :-)

reply | flag

message 3: by Joe

Jan 29, 2022 10:47AM

HI, Meike. I'm looking forward to discovering a few books out of my comfort zone and maybe picking up some German language if I'm not careful. Keep these book reports coming.

reply | flag

message 2: by Meike (last edited Jan 26, 2018 10:55PM)

Sep 20, 2017 11:19AM

Steven wrote: "Hallo, danke für deine Freundschaftsanfrag.

fröhliches Lesen!"

De rien! :-)

reply | flag

message 1: by Steven

Sep 20, 2017 10:54AM