Hofmann, Corinne 1960-

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Hofmann, Corinne 1960-

PERSONAL:

Born June 4, 1960, in Frauenfield, Thurgau, Switzerland; separated; husband's name Lketinga; children: Naipiri (daughter).

ADDRESSES:

Home—Lake Lugano, Switzerland. E-mail—[email protected].

CAREER:

Writer. Former insurance representative; dress shop proprietor, 1981-86.

WRITINGS:

MEMOIRS

Zurück aus Afrika (title means "Back in Africa"), [Germany], 2003.

The White Masai: An Exotic Tale of Love and Adventure, translated from the German by Peter Millar, Amistad (New York, NY), 2005.

Wiedersehen in Barsaloi (title means "Reunion in Barsaloi"), [Germany], 2005.

ADAPTATIONS:

The White Masai was adapted for film by Hermine Huntgeburth, 2005.

SIDELIGHTS:

Corinne Hofmann was born and raised in Switzerland, where she apprenticed in retail and went to work in insurance sales. At the age of twenty-one, she decided to open her own retail store, where she sold bridal dresses and upscale secondhand clothing. She first traveled to Kenya on a vacation in 1986, and the following year she moved there to be with Lketinga, a Masai warrior she had met on her previous trip. Hofmann's travels, marriage to Lketinga, their life in his village, and her return to Switzerland with their daughter in 1990, are the subject of her books, starting with The White Masai: An Exotic Tale of Love and Adventure. Hofmann takes a close look at the differences in culture that contributed to the failure of her marriage, while giving a detailed description of life in the bush. A contributor for Kirkus Reviews called the book "unusual and highly addictive entertainment." Hofmann continued her story in two more volumes—Back in Afrika and Reunion in Barsaloi—in which she chronicles her returns to Africa, and her first reunion with Lketinga after fourteen years. In an interview for the Bookseller, Hofmann said of her experiences: "I'm very, very proud that I took the step to do it…. It changed my whole life and I really treasure the whole experience. I don't regret anything at all and I'd do it exactly the same way again."

BIOGRAPHICAL AND CRITICAL SOURCES:

BOOKS

Hofmann, Corinne, Zurück aus Afrika, [Germany], 2003.

Hofmann, Corinne, The White Masai: An Exotic Tale of Love and Adventure, translated from the German by Peter Millar, Amistad (New York, NY), 2005.

Hofmann, Corinne, Wiedersehen in Barsaloi (title means "Reunion in Barsaloi"), [Germany], 2005.

PERIODICALS

Africa News Service, July 8, 2006, "Lots of Culture Clashes in ‘The White Masai.’"

Atlantic Monthly, March, 2006, R. Jay Magill, Jr., "Germany: Bestsellers Abroad" review of Wiedersehen in Barsaloi, p. 132.

Bookseller, July 8, 2005, Benedicte Page, "In and Out of Africa: Corinne Hofmann Talks to Benedicte Page about Her Marriage to a Masai Warrior and How She Left Switzerland for an African Village," p. 23; August 26, 2005, "Sunday Times and Sunday Herald to Interview Corinne Hofmann with Help from Arcadia," p. 10, and Claire Simpson, "Warrior Love," p. 38; August 4, 2006, "Masai on the Up Down Under," p. 37.

Canberra Times, July 22, 2006, review of The White Masai film.

Daily Mail (London, England), September 16, 2005, "Swiss Miss to Masai Mrs.," p. 64.

Daily Variety, August 19, 2005, Tamsen Tillson, "‘Masai’ Joins Toronto Fest Preems," p. 3.

Globe and Mail (Toronto, Ontario, Canada), December 16, 2006, "The Colonialist of Unrequited Dreams," review of The White Masai, p. D14.

Hollywood Reporter, October 11, 2005, Kirk Honeycutt, review of The White Masai film, p. 22.

Kirkus Reviews, July 1, 2006, review of The White Masai, p. 663.

Library Journal, July 1, 2006, Alison Hopkins, review of The White Masai, p. 87.

Mail on Sunday (London, England), August 28, 2005, "Mad about a Masai," p. 52.

People, November 13, 2006, Liza Nelson and others, "Books," review of The White Masai, p. 51.

Publishers Weekly, May 29, 2006, review of The White Masai, p. 44.

Variety, September 26, 2005, Leslie Felperin, review of The White Masai film, p. 56.