Mirko Bonné and Mike O'Shea

On 27 February 2015, the first event of the series Germany@Home featured German writer Mirko Bonné and Irish Polar explorer Mike O' Shea, who retraced the Shackleton expedition of 1914/15.

Ernest Shackleton, polar explorer born in Kilkea (Co. Kildare) in 1874, is at the centre of the novel The Ice-Cold Heaven by Mirko Bonné.

Winner of the several awards including the French Prix Relay du Roman d’Evasion, Mirko Bonné is a born storyteller who creates worlds alive to all the senses. He has a unique international perspective formed by residencies in Marseille, New York, Rio de Janeiro and Shanghai. Bonné is author of Nie mehr Nacht nominated for the German Book Award 2013. He read as part of the climate project 'Weather Stations' – an international project that places literature and storytelling at the heart of discussions about climate change.