First published in 1987, and encompassing texts from almost four decades, "Kleist, Moss, Pheasants" brings together autobiographical pieces, diary entries and reflections on fellow authors by Ilse Aichinger. As Richard Reichensperger remarks, the volume demonstrates the complex interconnections between historical events and Aichinger's life, thought and writing. The style, tone, and force of "Kleist, Moss, Pheasants" foreshadow the Major achievements of Aichinger's late productive period around the turn of the millennium, which are evidenced in "Film and Fate" and "Improbable Journeys".

The translator, Geoff Wilkes, is a Senior Lecturer in German Studies at the University of Queensland in Brisbane, Australia. He has previously translated Ilse Aichinger's "Die größere Hoffnung", "Film und Verhängnis. Blitzlichter auf ein Leben" and "Unglaubwürdige Reisen" into English for K&N.