Capybarabooks

Capybarabooks is an independent publishing house based in Luxembourg. According to its official website, it publishes German-language fiction (Belletristik), non-fiction (Sachbücher) and travel books (Reisebücher), as well as Luxembourgish translations of classics of children's and young adult literature. The publisher's catalogue is strongly multilingual: it releases titles in German, French and Luxembourgish, reflecting the trilingual literary culture of the Grand Duchy. The house is named after the capybara (Wasserschwein), an animal that appears in its branding and in the way it describes its own authors — for example, the website refers to "our author ... from the publishing house with the water pig" ("aus dem Verlag mit dem Wasserschwein"). Capybarabooks presents itself as a literary publisher with a curated list of contemporary authors, including Anne Frausing, Julia Harnoncourt, Corina Ciocârlie, Yves Schmitz, Inna Ganschow, Antoine Pohu, Margret Steckel and Guy Helminger. Its output spans several genres. In fiction, it publishes novels, short-story collections and monologues, such as Antoine Pohu's "Nous sommes celleux qui marchent dans la ville" (2023, third edition 2026) and "Parfois la nuit se tait" (2023, second edition 2025), and his 2025 novel "Après nos désirs". In non-fiction, it addresses history and memory, including works on Luxembourg's colonial past by Yves Schmitz and on migration and exile by Inna Ganschow. It also publishes French-language titles by authors such as Corina Ciocârlie and Anne Frausing. The publisher has gained recognition through literary prizes awarded to its authors. In particular, the Prix Batty Weber, Luxembourg's most important literary prize, awarded every three years for a lifetime literary achievement, went to Capybarabooks author Guy Helminger for 2026. The website notes that he is the third writer from the publishing house with the water pig to receive the award, after Georges Hausemer in 2017 and Margret Steckel in 2023. This track record positions Capybarabooks as a significant contributor to contemporary Luxembourgish literature. Capybarabooks operates as a private, independent publisher. Its website functions as a shop window for new releases ("Neuerscheinungen"), author portraits and news about awards and events. The publisher's list is small and carefully selected, with an emphasis on literary quality and on giving a platform to voices writing in the languages of Luxembourg and its neighbouring regions.

Capybarabooks is an independent publishing house based in Luxembourg. Its official website describes its programme as German-language fiction (Belletristik), non-fiction (Sachbücher) and travel books (Reisebücher), together with Luxembourgish translations of classics of children's and young adult literature. The publisher's name and visual identity reference the capybara, called Wasserschwein ("water pig") in German; the website refers to itself as "the publishing house with the water pig" ("der Verlag mit dem Wasserschwein"). The house has built a catalogue of contemporary authors writing in German, French and Luxembourgish. Among its authors are Anne Frausing, Julia Harnoncourt, Corina Ciocârlie, Yves Schmitz, Inna Ganschow, Antoine Pohu, Margret Steckel and Guy Helminger. Its list includes literary fiction, short stories, monologues and essays, as well as non-fiction on history, memory, migration and Luxembourg's relationship to colonialism. A notable strand of the catalogue is its engagement with Luxembourgish history and identity. Yves Schmitz's books, for example, address the question of Luxembourg as a colonial power, with titles such as "Le Luxembourg n'a jamais été une puissance coloniale" and "Luxemburg war nie eine Kolonialmacht". Inna Ganschow's "Keiner weinte, es gab keine Tränen mehr" deals with themes of migration and loss. These titles reflect the publisher's interest in critical, multilingual perspectives on the Grand Duchy's past and present. Capybarabooks has also published several works by the Luxembourgish writer Antoine Pohu, who writes in French. His monologue "Nous sommes celleux qui marchent dans la ville" appeared with capybarabooks in 2023 and reached a third edition in 2026; his novel "Parfois la nuit se tait" was published in 2023 and reached a second edition in 2025; and his novel "Après nos désirs" was published in 2025. Pohu holds a master's degree in performing arts from the ULB, where he specialised in dramaturgy and writing, and works on various theatre projects. The publisher's authors have received major recognition. The Prix Batty Weber, Luxembourg's most important literary prize, awarded every three years for a lifetime literary achievement, was given to Guy Helminger for 2026. The website notes that he is the third writer from Capybarabooks to win the award, following Georges Hausemer in 2017 and Margret Steckel in 2023. This succession of awards underlines the publisher's role in contemporary Luxembourgish letters. Capybarabooks presents itself as a small, curated literary house. Its website serves as a showcase for new releases ("Neuerscheinungen"), author portraits and news. While the exact founding date and ownership structure are not stated in the available evidence, the publisher is active and continues to release new titles and new editions, and it participates in the literary life of Luxembourg and the wider German- and French-language book markets.

• 2026

  Guy Helminger, author at Capybarabooks, is awarded the Prix Batty Weber 2026; third edition of Antoine Pohu's 'Nous sommes celleux qui marchent dans la ville'.

• 2025

  Second edition of Antoine Pohu's 'Parfois la nuit se tait'; publication of his novel 'Après nos désirs'.

• 2023

  Capybarabooks author Margret Steckel receives the Prix Batty Weber; Antoine Pohu publishes 'Nous sommes celleux qui marchent dans la ville' and 'Parfois la nuit se tait' with capybarabooks.

• 2017

  Capybarabooks author Georges Hausemer receives the Prix Batty Weber.

Independent literary publisher focused on German-language fiction, non-fiction and travel books, plus Luxembourgish translations of children's and young adult classics, with a multilingual (German, French, Luxembourgish) catalogue.

• 2023

  Nous sommes celleux qui marchent dans la ville

• 2023

  Parfois la nuit se tait

• 2025

  Après nos désirs

• Le Village des tentes

• »Indésirables« aus Übersee

• Les Dîners de Gaia. Des mets et des mots italiens au Luxembourg

• Le Luxembourg n'a jamais été une puissance coloniale

• Keiner weinte, es gab keine Tränen mehr

• Doswidanja, Genosse

• »Luxemburg war nie eine Kolonialmacht«

• Rouge fantôme

1. 1Capybarabooks official websitecapybarabooks.com
2. 2Capybarabooks on Wikidatawikidata.org