Born in 1985 in Wetzikon, Switzerland, Dorothee Elmiger's work incorporates themes of postcolonialism, migration, ecocriticism, feminism, and gender studies. Her novels Out of the Sugar Factory (2020), Shift Sleepers (2014), and Invitation to the Bold at Heart (2010) have been awarded numerous literary prizes. In 2020, Out of the Sugar Factory was shortlisted for the German Book Prize and nominated for the Swiss Book Prize. Her residency at U-M was made possible by grants fromt he Max Kade Foundation and the U-M Arts Initiative for the theme semester Arts & Resistance.