Literature Author Pascal Janovjak follows an oil tanker to its doom
It was one of the biggest cases of fraud in maritime history when the oil tanker "Salem" sank off the coast of Senegal in 1980. The ending of the novel "The Voyage of the Salem" is therefore predetermined. Author Pascal Janovjak is interested in the convoluted path to this ending.
04.11.2025, 10:05
SDA
All the ingredients are there for a true-crime story of the kind that currently thrills millions: an oil tanker sails under a false name, sinks under dubious circumstances, there is no oil spill, the insurance company is expected to pay a record 56 million US dollars. It reeks of fraud.
Basel-born Pascal Janovjak, who lives in Rome and writes in French, dedicates his second novel to this story. He was awarded a Swiss literary prize in 2020 for his debut "Der Zoo in Rom" (2021).
In his search for clues under the title "Die Fahrt der Salem", Janovjak does not simply retell the events. Rather, he combines various approaches to a possible reconstruction of the events.
Diary entries by a Tunisian sailor provide an insight into life and work on board, and the first signs of the impending fraud can be recognized.
Janovjak interweaves these vignettes with a research report that reveals where the information about the Salem and the million-dollar scam came from. The author reflects on the fascination with fraud stories and what they can tell us about society and the economic system.
Janovjak takes on a lot with the interweaving of different storylines and literary forms. This is original and far removed from true crime clichés - but the mixture doesn't always work. The story is rarely allowed to speak for itself and is all too often explained. The diary entries are somewhat poetic, which does not fit the image of a hard-working sailor.
Nevertheless, Janovjak's search for clues is fascinating, as it repeatedly leads unexpectedly close to our doorstep: to the financial and commodities trading center of Switzerland.
*This text by Ramon Juchli, Keystone-SDA, was realized with the help of the Gottlieb and Hans Vogt Foundation.
