DUTCH Spring 2021 Dutch Foundation Foundation Dutch Literature for NON–

FICTION1 WANDERLUST MIREILLE BERMAN

In this brochure, the Dutch Foundation for Literature is pleased to present well-written and much talked about non-fiction titles recently published in the . More than ever, it has become clear that the world does not stop at national borders: the corona­ virus, climate change, international conflicts affect us all, and we are kept abreast of global developments through traditional and new media. The Dutch non-fiction that we present here responds to this. The books are by Dutch authors, but all are international in terms of subject matter and approach: it is non-fiction from the Netherlands, but certainly not only of importance to the Netherlands.

For example, internationally-renowned virologist Jaap Goudsmit sheds light on the background of the COVID-19 pandemic; historian Beatrice de Graaf explains what motivates terrorists worldwide; and Daniël Verlaan exposes how cross-border internet crime works. But Dutch non-fiction authors also write about the kind of personal issues that keep us awake at night: a devastating feeling of guilt (Jannah Loontjens), loneliness (Marjan Slob), or simply insomnia (Bregje Hofstede). Authors writing about their identity inevitably bring the global dimensions of the post-colonial Netherlands into the picture: Raoul de Jong writes about Suriname, Jan Brokken about Indonesia. And then there is the infectious, naive wanderlust of The Globetrotters, who set off in 1911 to make the world a better place.

The Dutch Foundation for Literature is keen to provide a platform for this global exchange. Now that COVID-19 has glued everyone to their screens and the usual conversations at bookfairs in Frankfurt, London and elsewhere are impossible, we are running a monthly Editors’ Hour, in which international non-fiction publishers are invited to take a seat around a virtual table to discuss recent acquisi- tions and publishing developments. No titles are pitched – although this is not forbidden – but conversations are held on how today’s world is affecting the book trade. Together with my colleague Michele Hutchison, we cordially invite interested editors to attend one of the following meetings. Please drop us a line at: [email protected]

1 Raoul Jaguarman An inspirational journey into the heart — My Father, His Father of Suriname de Jong and Other Heroes of Suriname

Raoul de Jong, the son of a Dutch mother with leading Surinamese writers, thinkers and ‘If there is one book and a Surinamese father, has never met his resistance heroes, he discovers how the jaguar’s you really need to read father until he receives an email just before power was essential for the country, and comes to this year, it is Jaguar- his twenty-eighth birthday asking to meet. understand how much everyone can learn from it. man: to learn something Intriguingly his father tells him about a family This is a personal, idiosyncratic book written essential about uncom- curse. ‘Please, son, leave it alone,’ his father like an adventure novel, with room for magic and fortable truths, to “keep urges him, but this is enough for the curious mystery and a hope-filled conclusion. It is also thinking for yourself, writer to do exactly the opposite. One of his a beautiful ode to the land of his father. De Jong even when no one else ancestors, a medicine man, could transform himself says, ‘I didn’t intend my book to be “white does” and to embrace himself into a jaguar and, gripped by this mys- homework”, you could read it like that, but you your inner beauty.’ tery, Raoul decides to investigate in Suriname. would also be selling it short. You don’t have to Tzum have Surinamese roots or be the great-grandson Raoul’s account of his quest is composed of ten of a plantation owner to take away something ‘Jaguarman is a letters to his mysterious ancestor, the Jaguarman. from the history of Suriname.’ surprisingly rich book. To get in touch with him and his other ancestors, De Jong pulls you into Raoul completes a seven-day ritual upon the the story, which is full advice of Winti priestess, Miss Elly Purperhart. of offshoots and leaps The central questions for the Jaguarman are as in time and thought.’ follows, ‘My father said you could turn yourself NRC Handelsblad into the strongest, and some say, the cruellest Dutch title animal in the South American rainforest, the king Jaguarman. Mijn vader, zijn vader of the Amazon, the jaguar. How did you do that? en andere Surinaamse helden Who were you? Where did you come from? How Year of publication did you get your strength? And why, according to 2020 my father, should I leave those powers alone?’ Page count As a reader, you follow this investigation of the Raoul de Jong (b. 1984) 256 Jaguarman’s powers, and if you let yourself be travelled through West Africa Publisher carried away, you fall under his spell – no matter for four months at the age of how rationally you begin this book. Along with nineteen, survived New York the main character, you learn about the tumul- for four months with fifty dol- Rights lars in his pocket and walked Marijke Nagtegaal tuous past of the Surinamese people. The history from Rotterdam to Marseille. [email protected] of the former Dutch colony is one of oppression He has published six novels, Uta Matten and slavery, but those who search also find a great including De grootsheid van [email protected] deal of hope and vitality. Raoul is living proof: het al (The Vastness of the Illustrations his ancestors somehow managed to survive. Universe, 2013) and Dagboek B&W drawings During this quest, in which he acquaints himself van een adolescent (Diary of an Adolescent, 2018).

Photo (© Stephan Vanfleteren) Dutch Non-Fiction Spring 2021 2 3 Bas von After The Annex The first comprehensive study of — Anne Frank and the its kind, on the tragic camp fates of Benda- Nazi Death Camps Anne Frank and each of her seven Beckmann companions in hiding

When Anne Frank’s father, Otto, returned While many records are still missing, and in ‘Everyone should read to from Auschwitz, he sought many cases were actively destroyed by the Nazis, this unbearable book, to uncover what had happened to his wife Von Beckmann makes use of countless eye- though you actually and two daughters, the Van Pels family and witness accounts from people who had been in would never recommend dentist Fritz Pfeffer – the seven companions the same camps at the same time in order to paint it to anyone.’ with whom he had spent two years in hiding a picture of the conditions they would have been Trouw before their arrest by the Gestapo. He awaited subjected to. Such a process is not without its their return at the train station each day, historiographical challenges, which the author ‘Suspenseful is not photographs of them in hand. Tragically, addresses, just as he makes new discoveries about exactly the right word. It after piecing together the stories of the few their individual fates and interactions in the feels inappropriate for eyewitnesses he found, he would be forced camps. Von Benda-Beckmann also situates these a story about the Holo- to conclude that he alone had survived the experiences within a larger historical context and caust. But what do you Nazi death camps. Seventy-five years later, the Nazis’ developing approach to the systematic call a book that you find After the Annex takes up Otto Frank’s project extermination of European Jewish people. harder and harder to put and carefully reconstructs each of their camp This is a heart-wrenching and detailed his- down, because you want experiences in the final days of . torical account, written in a highly readable and to know what happens evocative style. The many photographs of docu- next?’ On the last page of what might be the best- ments and details that have been included help NRC Handelsblad known war story in all of Western history, Anne bring this disturbing chapter of history to life, Frank and the seven protagonists of her diary taking us the closest yet to the tragedy of these Dutch title joined the faceless mass of Holocaust victims eight individuals. Na het Achterhuis. Anne Frank en de whose individual fates, experiences and memories andere onderduikers in de kampen remain largely unknown. In this first systematic Year of publication and comprehensive historical account of its kind, 2020 author Bas von Benda-Beckmann turns to the Page count wide array of sources available to historians today After the Annex was pub- Previous books include 416 to restore to each their individuality. Starting with lished in collaboration with The Velser Affair, which was Sample translation their lives before the war, he retraces their jour- the Anne Frank Foundation, shortlisted for the Libris Available ney from their detainment in Amsterdam to Dutch where Bas von Benda-Beck- History Prize, and The transit camp Westerbork, at which point their mann (b. 1976) currently Oranjehotel­ , which garnered Publisher works as a historian. He equally high praise. This lat- Querido paths diverge as they are deported and transferred received his PhD from the est work builds on previous Martijn Prins between Auschwitz-Birkenau, Bergen-Belsen, University of Amsterdam, historical research by Erika [email protected] Mauthausen, Raguhn, Melk and Neuengamme. where he wrote his disser- Prins, Esther Göbel, Gertjan Rights sold He meticulously reconstructs their experiences of tation about the German Broek and Teresien da Silva. historiography of the Allied Catalan, Galician, Castilian, French, forced labour, factory work, disease, hunger, vio- bombings during the Sec- German, Portuguese, Russia lence, freezing temperatures and death marches. ond World War.

Photo (© Lionne Hietberg) Dutch Non-Fiction Spring 2021 4 5 Bregje Getting To Sleep A beautifully-written essay that shifts — How an Insomniac the problem of sleeplessness beyond Hofstede Reclaimed the Night the sleeper

Most animal species do not suffer from and smoothly weaves world literature through On The Rediscovery of the Body: insomnia. Only animals living in captivity are her own candid reflections. As in her memoir on known to develop sleeping problems. Horses burnout, she concludes that we cannot separate ‘No tips here, no in cramped stables, for example, sway all physical complaints from the demands, social catharsis, but her book night and hardly sleep. Yet one in ten people pressure and tensions caused by the world around encourages reflection suffer from chronic insomnia – are our cages us. Herbal tea and better curtains may help, but on mental and physical too small? Bregje Hofstede, a certified insom- the real solution lies in how we deal with our health and the interac- niac herself, looks at the root causes of poor emotions. tion between the two.’ sleep in the hope of understanding why she Hofstede’s own search for tranquillity ends Trouw has such trouble with it. with a radical decision: she moves from the city to a mountainous region in the French countryside. ‘Sleep was once a god: Morpheus, god of dreams. ‘If lifestyle tips don’t work, don’t change your On her novel Drift: In paintings, he is a handsome winged young man lifestyle, change your life,’ she concludes, noting who takes the sleeper in his arms.’ While sleep may that though she has made this decision for herself, ‘With Drift, Bregje be a universal part of life, it remains surprisingly she doesn’t want to impose it on others. Hofstede proves that she mysterious. We do not really know what it is, belongs to the new wave why we do it, how it works or why exactly it goes of Great Dutch writers.’ wrong. What are the fault lines running through De Wereld Draait Door our nights? book panel (TV) In this literary essay, Bregje Hofstede examines Dutch title the function of sleep, why we fail at it and how Slaap vatten. Hoe een slapeloze much we are responsible for our own sleepless- de nacht terugwon ness or not. Along the way, she addresses the Year of publication place dreams have in our lives, why our moods are 2021 so dependent on sleep and what a sleep-friendly Page count environment might look like. After trying the Bregje Hofstede (b. 1988) she examines her own 140 usual treatments like melatonin, blue light and is a writer and journalist, burnout. For De Correspon- exercise, she concludes that insomnia is actually a whose debut novel The dent, she regularly writes on Sample translation wake-up call that something greater must change. Sky Above Paris received the topic of New Feminism. Available This is a personal handbook for the bad sleeper, excellent reviews and was The English translation of Rights translated into German Hofstede’s autobiograph- positioned somewhere between popular science Das Mag and Danish. She followed ical essay Mountain was Stella Rieck and memoir, written in a confessional literary this with Drift, which was published as a chapbook [email protected] style. Bregje Hofstede is a master at combining nominated for the Libris in 2020 by Strangers Press Literature Prize and also and explores love and child- Rights sold different genres: she gives us access to the inti- published in German. Her hood, nostalgia and hope. macy of her inner world, refers to thinkers, sleep psychologists and psychiatrists, philosophers, next book was The Redis- covery of the Body, in which

Photo (© Natalie Hill) Dutch Non-Fiction Spring 2021 6 7 Daniël I Know Your Password True stories from the dark side Verlaan of the web

Picture this: you buy something on eBay their own kind of threat, Verlaan also infiltrated a ‘I Know Your Password and not long afterwards your bank account large-scale paedophile network on the dark web reads like a journalistic is plundered. Or your smart thermostat is and shares findings that came unsettlingly close thriller.’ hijacked and your house heated to 37˚C until to home. In a chapter on revenge porn, it becomes De Volkskrant you transfer bitcoins to the hackers. You buy clear how devastating these types of criminal a surveillance camera to keep an eye on your actions can be, and Joëlle and Nova tell how their ‘A true page-turner.’ dog and it suddenly says ‘Suck my dick’. The lives have been turned upside down by threats, NRC Handelsblad internet is a world of opportunities but we extortion and stalking. often forget that these opportunities are open Each chapter concludes with useful tips against ‘Read this book and to criminals and stalkers too. digital vulnerability. Readers will abandon their take Verlaan’s advice to naïve belief that they have nothing to hide after heart. Hackers will hate Daniël Verlaan, a young investigative journalist reading this book. You may have nothing to hide, you for it.’ specialized in new technology, has written an but you do have something to lose. In this age 8Weekly eye-opening and frank, story-driven account of Covid-19, when most of our life is conducted of the hidden dangers of the digital world. He through our laptops and smartphones, and online explains how hackers look for weaknesses in scams are more common than ever, this book has website and database security, what the dark web been on the bestseller lists for weeks. is, why you should be concerned about data leaks, phishing, ransomware and spyware, and – most importantly – what you can do about it. Dutch title Verlaan went undercover and surfed the dark Ik weet je wachtwoord web. He interviewed hackers, cyber criminals and Year of publication victims of revenge porn. He talked to a teenager 2020 who brought down entire banking systems and found out how a small arthouse cinema could Page count take computers hostage on a large scale. Unsus- 347 Daniël Verlaan (b. 1989) is pecting targets as well as perpetrators of clever, a tech journalist for the TV Sold copies malicious and international hacks each have their channel RTL Nieuws where 30,000 say. Surprisingly, some amazingly well-executed he reports on technology Sample translation online scams turn out to be little more than the and researches the dark Available side of the internet. In 2019, bored experiments of insecure adolescent boys. he received two journalism Publisher These are disturbing, sometimes terrifying prizes for his work: De Tegel Das Mag stories that will make you think again about how for journalistic talent, and Rights you use your computer and your smart phone. De Loep, the prestigious Cossee International Agency While DDoS (Distributed Denial of Service), prize for the best investiga- Stella Rieck international cyberattacks and phishing pose tive journalism. [email protected] Photo (© Bart Koetsier) Dutch Non-Fiction Spring 2021 8 9 Wim The Globetrotters Idealist revolutionaries in sandals — A League of Idealists Willems

On 16 July 1911, three friends dressed in ethnic tensions in the Austro-Hungarian Empire, ‘A story that seems velvet suits and leather sandals set out from and takes in the remains of the Ottoman Empire too crazy to be true, but Amsterdam to walk around the world. They and colonialism in the Middle East. nevertheless is. […] It is a were pacificists, vegetarians, teetotallers, In addition to retracing their steps, Willems breath-taking journey.’ socialists, but – above all – working-class boys attempts to uncover the source of their vision NRC Handelsblad set on escaping their lot in life. Without much — especially in a time when only the elite could money or preparation, yet buoyed by their expect to travel. He also speaks with their living ‘A small monument to optimism and idealism, they would make it to descendants in the Netherlands, and Aus- bygone ideals.’ the Middle East before their journey was cut tralia to sketch the very different lives the group Het Parool short by the First World War. Nearly a century led after their journey. None of them escaped the later, a chest of their diaries, letters and sweeping political movements of the twentieth ‘This book makes you drawings fell into historian Wim Willems’ lap, century, with tragic consequences for one. Never- reflect on hope, longing, sparking a new journey to reconstruct their theless, their mission lives on today in their family dreaming and utopia.’ footsteps and motivations, their later lives members spread around the globe. De Groene and evolution of their ideals. This is an extraordinary history, one as enter- Amsterdammer taining as it is poignant, and an ode to youthful To earn money, the three friends sold portrait idealism that will capture readers’ hearts. It also cards and reported on their travels for small includes a selection of delightful photographs and newspapers. They slept beneath the stars, or in drawings made underway. haystacks, traversed snowy mountains barefoot; Dutch title they were ‘hippies avant la lettre’, and their De Wereldwandelaars. Een verbond unusual fame quickly spread as they walked van idealisten through Germany, Switzerland, Austria, Hungary, Year of publication Romania, and from Constantinople to Palestine. 2020 After eight months, Marie Zwarts, the girlfriend Page count of one of the three, would join the group. Wim Willems (b. 1951) is praised biography of Indo 384 Eventually spanning years, it was not a journey emeritus professor of Social writer and intellectual Sample translation free of setbacks and fights, and Willems describes History at the University of Tjalie Robinson. . As an avid walker Available their many encounters and impressions, as well as the surprising places their optimism and fervent who also grew up in a Publisher working-class family where belief in goodwill took them. Their message of Querido studying was not a given, pacifism and socialist unity, however, contrasted he felt a strong bond with Rights sharply with the world around them. With the the three globetrotters and Martijn Prins help of diary entries and letters home, Willems their inspired endeavour to [email protected] lead a different life. Willems Jolijn Spooren resurrects a Europe on the brink of dizzying is the author of, among [email protected] bloodshed, as the young group navigates the other titles, the highly

Photo (© Arrash Nikkhah) Dutch Non-Fiction Spring 2021 10 11 Beatrice Radical Redemption On terrorism and the search for — What Terrorists meaning – a human portrait de Graaf Believe In

Jihadist terrorism is often dismissed as narrative. But there is also a task for wider soci- On Theatre of Fear: a problem of ‘Islam’ or as a consequence of ety. Terrorism preys on the fears of its victims, discrimination. Others conclude that terror- both those of people directly affected by it and ‘Beatrice de Graaf ists are mentally disturbed. While these might in the imagination of the society at large. How works in a very intelli- be easy answers, they do little to reflect the can we put that fear of the terrorist’s search for gent and surprising way process of radicalisation. Terrorism expert radical redemption in proportion? and comes up with inter- Beatrice de Graaf examines the individual Radical Redemption combines testimony, his- esting and extremely lives behind acts of violent extremism to tory, psychology, and theology to identify topical insights. Her throw light on the connection between a and unpack a vital aspect of the most recent wave work is a relief in a time terrorist’s beliefs and their actions. of violent extremism. in which everyone seems to already have their Upon recording the life stories of almost thirty opinion ready.’ convicted terrorists – mainly Dutch jihadists but 8Weekly also non-Western terrorists and Western right- wing extremists – De Graaf discovers a broad narrative of individuals searching for radical On Dangerous Women: meaning. In their frustration and rage at their individual lives, they came to believe that radical ‘The great thing about personal redemption could be achieved through these portraits is that violence. They found a higher purpose in a view they are all worthwhile, Dutch title of the world that cast them as the centre in the carefully documented Radicale verlossing. Wat terroristen battle between good and evil. How did these men geloven and averse to clichés or acquire this belief and where did it lead them? pre-established stances.’ Year of publication What happened when that desired redemption de Volkskrant 2021 never came? Page count That these often-harrowing life stories usually Beatrice de Graaf (b. 1976) on terrorism and has pub- 304 end in disillusionment does not seem to have is a professor of History lished, among other titles, Full English translation lessened extremism’s heroic draw, particularly for of International Relations Dangerous Women, Theatre Available disaffected young people. De Graaf ends by calling and Global Governance of Fear, Terrorists on Trial at Utrecht University. She and The Balancers. In 2018 Publisher for more research to explore ways of reducing ter- researches the history of her oeuvre was awarded Prometheus rorism’s appeal and identifying better alternatives terrorism, war and violence the Netherlands’ highest Rights for those who turn to it in search of meaning. One and is particularly inter- scientific distinction: the Marisca van der Mark crucial requirement is that religious or ideological ested in the fight against Stevin Award. [email protected] communities clearly distance themselves from them. She was a fellow individuals who believe that violence is a means at Cambridge University, of redemption. There needs to be a counter- regularly makes public appearances as an expert

Photo (© David van Dam) Dutch Non-Fiction Spring 2021 12 13 Frank The Cosmic Comedy ‘The Discovery of Heaven but in real life. Westerman Stunning.’ – Radio 1

Strange phenomena in the sky are the most ter’s satellite moons. Westerman visits the villa in ‘A dizzying story about popular omens of all time: the passage of Tuscany where Galileo spent seven years impris- the connection between comets, eclipses of the sun and moon, mete- oned for his views. He also talks to contemporary heaven and hell.’ orite hits and stars that suddenly light up. Milanese astronomer Guiseppe Gavazzi and looks Het Parool The end must be nigh. Cosmology represents back on Christianity’s conflict with astronomy. humankind’s ultimate reaching for the stars, In poetic prose, Frank Westerman takes the ‘A lyrical account with whether with a telescope or a rocket. The reader on a grand tour through time, taking in a rich theme handled Cosmic Comedy lifts off with the questionwhy our tilting image of the heavens, with or without by Westerman with navigate the universe? Are we compensating god. Westerman comes to the conclusion that verve, weaving together for a lack? Emptiness? What do we expect to stargazing, driven by wonder, has changed our reportage, childhood find on the moon or on Mars that we don’t view of the heavens, while space travel, driven by memories, essay, histor- have on Earth? rivalry, has changed our view of the Earth. From ical treatise and philo- Copernicus, Huygens and Schiaparelli to Yuri sophical reflection […] The Cosmic Comedy is a philosophical medita- Gagarin and the first female robot in space, The a wonderful book about tion on the longing for a better world – beyond Cosmic Comedy is science non-fiction at its most man, the cosmos and the the Earth’s atmosphere. Our journey revolves mind-blowing. desire to reach further around Westerman’s own axis, Westerbork in than seems possible.’ the Dutch province of Drenthe where he grew NRC Handelsblad up. There the observatory with its world-class telescope Westerbork Synthesis Radio Telescope Dutch title (WSRT), brainchild of pioneer Jan Oort, scans the De kosmische komedie sky with its majestic satellite dishes. On the site of Year of publication the former Nazi transit camp. Nowhere is heaven 2021 so close to hell. Page count Beyond Westerbork, the author takes the reader 284 to Franeker planetarium, the oldest working plan- Frank Westerman (b. 1964) Horse (2010), Choke Valley etarium in the world. There in 1774, Eise Eisinga, Sample translation studied Tropical Cultivation (2013) and A Word A Word a wool-comber by trade, built a model of the solar at Wageningen University. In (2016). His work, which has Available system in his living room to reassure people that a 1987 he spent a year in the received numerous awards, Publisher doomsday prediction that the planets would spiral Peruvian Andes, research- has been widely translated. Querido Fosfor ing the irrigation methods His previous book, We, Hom- out of their orbits to be burned up by the sun of Aymara Indians. Wester- inids, has been translated Rights could not be true. man is the author of many into French, German, Italian, Martijn Prins We also travel to , where three centuries bestsellers: The Republic Polish, Spanish and English [email protected] - of Grain (1999), Engineers so far. Jolijn Spooren after Dante, Galileo Galilei, the father of observa of the Soul (2002), El Negro [email protected] tional astronomy, shifted Earth from the centre of the universe for good when he discovered Jupi- and Me (2004), Ararat (2007), Brother Mendel’s Perfect

Photo (© Lionne Hietberg) Dutch Non-Fiction Spring 2021 14 15 Renata Diary From A rare and detailed Holocaust Bergen-Belsen testimony, comparable with Laqueur — March 1944 - Last Stop Auschwitz Introduction, afterword and editing by April 1945 Saskia Goldschmidt

At the age of twenty-four, Renata Laqueur Before the English and Canadians arrive in April ‘She describes the and her husband Paul Goldschmidt, two 1945, she and Paul are packed, along with 2,500 misery of the camp Jewish members of the Dutch resistance, are other emaciated and dying prisoners, into a train starkly – but also with arrested and, after a short internment in tran- and shipped through devastated Germany. The sensitivity. […] The suf- sit camp Westerbork, deported to concentra- nightmarish journey will last two weeks, until they fering described here is tion camp Bergen-Belsen in Germany. Though are finally liberated by the Russians, near the village the suffering of a million it is strictly forbidden, Laqueur manages to of Tröbitz, where she records her journey and people. A peacefully record her camp experience in four notebooks catches typhus while volunteering in a field hos- written book.’ and, shortly after the couple’s liberation, pital. Once back in the Netherlands, she types out Nederlands Dagblad write up her remaining notes in detail. More her diary as a national war document, reliving the than a story of survival, Diary from Bergen- monstrous, dream-like world she passed through. ‘A very moving book, Belsen is the surreal portrait of a sensitive For this new edition, Paul’s daughter, Saskia that is what Diary from and intelligent young woman attempting to Goldschmidt, a Dutch author, has provided an Bergen-Belsen is. […] transcend her harrowing reality, made all the invaluable introduction, afterword and notes Although the author has more powerful by her emotional restraint and that detail Renata’s life before and after the diary, tried to avoid emotion, ruthless pen. the fate of her and Paul’s marriage, and Renata’s the facts are so charged struggle with trauma and guilt. Returning to the and sobering that the After four months at Westerbork, Renata original notebooks at the Bergen-Belsen memorial reader nevertheless begins her diary with the train journey to Ger- archive, Goldschmidt has also included, for the first finds themselves closely many, where she and her husband must soon time, an intimate final portion of the diary which involved.’ Dutch title battle disease and starvation, violence and humil- candidly addresses the pain and rage that Renata, Limburgs Dagblad Dagboek uit Bergen-Belsen. Maart 1944-april 1945 iation. She lucidly notes down her reactions and like so many other camp survivors, attempted to depicts the camp’s deteriorating conditions, the suppress throughout her life. Year of publication absurd quality of their isolated existence as well as 2021 the tragedy of her prime years senselessly wasted Page count there. All the while, memories and thoughts of art Renata Laqueur (1919 -2011) for the literary merit of 240 and music, the physical act of writing, provide a was born in what is now concentration camp diaries. Sample translation source of emotional strength. She does everything Brzeg, and grew up Previous editions of her Available to care for Paul, who is dangerously close to in Amsterdam. Her father diary have been translated Publisher death; however, by December 1944, Renata is too was a Prussian professor into German and Welsh. and among the first scien- Meulenhoff physically weak herself to continue writing. In tists to isolate the hormone Saskia Goldschmidt Rights the overcrowded camp, death takes on terrifying testosterone. After the war, (b. 1954) is the author of Sebes & Bisseling proportions: the crematorium is overwhelmed, she moved to New York City, Mandatory Happiness: Paul Sebes piles of corpses fill the camp. where she remarried and Portrait of a Family and The [email protected] completed a PhD in Com- Hormone Factory. She cur- Rights sold parative Literary Studies at rently lives in Amsterdam. New York University, arguing Italy

Dutch Non-Fiction Spring 2021 16 17 Classic Sandra Erasmus The Maverick Erasmus’ life and thought — A Biography – the definitive biography Langereis of a European icon

Erasmus (1469 -1536) was a humanist, an that he demonstrated that the Latin Bible was ‘There were biogra- icon of critical thought and tolerance. Nev- the result of centuries of sloppy translation and phies about Erasmus ertheless, he has always been a controversial copying. already, but those were figure. In his study of the Bible, he assumed Although Erasmus is still seen as a critical more like sketches. Not that the scriptures were man-made. Through thinker and an advocate for tolerance, we can only one is as detailed and philological research, he showed how the understand him within his day and age. This is well-written as Erasmus ‘Holy Writ’ had developed over the course of why Langereis closely examines the contemporary The Maverick.’ centuries. That enraged both conservative historical, cultural and religious developments. Vrij Nederland clergymen and Martin Luther. Langereis She delves into medieval theology, the Bible’s presents Erasmus as a modern thinker, who evolution over a thousand years, the practice of ‘In her monumental sought to make those who read the Bible more copying manuscripts in monasteries, the rise of biography, Sandra rational and intelligent. universities and the printing press, the rise of the Langereis paints not book market, the rediscovery of classics and the only a clear picture of In this monumental biography, Sandra development of vernaculars, the reform move- Erasmus’ achievements Langereis – historian and specialist in the ment within the church, financial flows and the and ill manners, but 16th-century world of letters – makes use of a dangers travellers had to face. also offers an imposing wealth of archival material. Erasmus’ published All of this is written in a narrative, accessible cultural history of correspondence alone consists of more than style, without pomposity or endless citations. Europe during the 3,000 letters. She paints a detailed portrait of Langereis’ biography of Erasmus is not only the Renaissance.’ Dutch title Erasmus, which clearly shows his merits and new, definitive biography of one of Europe’s Historisch Nieuwsblad Erasmus: dwarsdenker. those aspects of his personality that were less greatest intellectuals, it is also an attractive, Een biografie admirable. But if Erasmus had only been ambi- informative cultural history beyond compare. Year of publication tious and arrogant, then people would not have 2021 written about him for over five centuries. Page count Erasmus was building on a humanist tradition 752 in which the recovery of classical antiquity’s Sandra Langereis (b. 1967) She considers this biography literary and philosophical legacy was central. Publisher is a historian of science and of Erasmus, in which he is But because the printing press made a definitive culture and a biographer. portrayed as a rational and De Bezige Bij breakthrough, he became the first best-selling Her previous biography, tolerant man, as ‘relevant for Rights author and could reach an enormous audience. The Wordsmith, about people today’. the 16th-century printer Marijke Nagtegaal Through Erasmus’ work, the educated middle [email protected] and publisher Christoffel Uta Matten classes learned to write and speak a supple and Plantijn, was nominated for [email protected] natural Latin. With In Praise of Folly, he initiated the Libris History Prize and the attack on the money-grubbing and belligerent chosen as best biography popes as well as other abuses within the church. and best history book of His most important achievement, however, was 2014 by the newspapers de Volkskrant and Trouw.

Photo (© Geert Snoeijer) Dutch Non-Fiction Spring 2021 18 19 Biography Margriet The Delightfulness of Rudi Is There Any Life Thought — The Lives of Stranger Than Mine? van der Tatiana Afanassjewa and Wester — Jef Last 1898 -1972 Heijden Paul Ehrenfest

A double biography that ‘A captivating book about a foregrounds science as an life-long search for love and ongoing conversation justice.’ – Trouw

Particle physicist and science journalist Writer, poet, painter, journalist, translator, Margriet van der Heijden describes the lives of compelling speaker: Jef Last doesn’t fit any box. the Jewish physicist Paul Ehrenfest (1880 -1933) He roamed the globe, fought in the Spanish Civil and his wife, Russian mathematician Tatyana War and was a brave resistance fighter. All his Afanassjewa (1876 -1964). Their story is also life he was a romantic, passionate about freedom that of the lightning development of physics at and justice, ever championing the underdog. A the start of the 20th-century, when quantum cultural bridge-builder between East and West, mechanics and the theory of relativity were with his reflections on Chinese developed. and translations of great Japanese writers, he The two meet as students in Göttingen. In counted André Gide and Willy Brandt among his 1912, Paul becomes a professor in Leiden, and friends. He evolved from an ardent socialist into Dutch title Dutch title their house becomes a lively salon for famous a humanist, with a stopover as a communist. He Denken is verrukkelijk. De levens van scientists. During WW1 and the turbulent times Bestaat er een raarder leven dan het was capricious and sometimes difficult, but had Tatiana Afanassjewa and Paul Ehrenfest mijne? Jef Last 1898 - 1972 that follow, the couple lead the way with progres- strong principles and was true to his conscience. Year of publication Year of publication sive ideas about pacifism and gender equality. He was a mirror of his time but also ahead of his 2021 In 1926, Tatyana leaves for Moscow, disap- 2021 time, as his biographer notes. Page count pointed. As a female scientist, she was kept in the Page count Jef Last was a man who constantly asked 432 wings. Without Tatyana, Paul becomes unhinged, 500 questions and wouldn’t accept second-hand Publisher and despairs the Nazism of Hitler’s Germany. Publisher knowledge. The son of a well-to-do family, he Prometheus He writes farewell letters and kills himself, after Prometheus was driven by an intense aversion to bourgeois Rights first killing their youngest son Wassik, a boy with Rights ethics, preferring instead to be a worker among Marisca van der Mark Down’s syndrome. Marisca van der Mark workers. Along with Joris Ivens, he was a pioneer [email protected] Paul did not make any major discoveries, but [email protected] in avant-garde film. Last was quick to see the the role he played was perhaps just as important. dangers of fascism, battled against colonialism He connected ideas, brought scientists together, after World War II, and fought for homosexuality and posed critical questions to colleagues such to be acknowledged. Rudi Wester has written a ‘A double biography as Einstein, Bohr, Schrödinger. This is a social ‘A very readable and compelling biography of this restless globetrotter. that reads like a novel.’ history of Europe, seen through the eyes of affectionate biography.’ De Nederlandse outsiders: a Jewish boy and a Russian Orthodox Biografie Portaal Boekengids girl, whose lives were lived in a fascinating circle.

Biography 20 21 Biography NEW & NEW & NOTEWORTHY NOTEWORTHY

Master storyteller A subtle, philosophical Jan Brokken dives into exploration of the fear of his personal history other people’s judgement

Jan Brokken Jannah Loontjens The Gardens of Buitenzorg Guilty — An Exploration of My Conscience

Page count Long before Jan Brokken (b. 1949) was born, his Page count Poet, essayist, novelist and philosopher 224 parents lived in Indonesia, a Dutch colony at the 240 Jannah Loontjens, mother of two young children, Publisher time. Brokken never knew much about this part of Publisher decides not to celebrate Christmas with her Atlas Contact his parents’ past. He only ever knew his mother as Podium mother this year. Afterwards she feels enor- Rights a pastor’s wife in a traditional village in Holland. Rights mously burdened: how should she tell her? And Hayo Deinum After his parents’ death, his aunt hands him the Cossee Literary Agency where do those stubborn, everlasting feelings of [email protected] letters and photographs that her sister Olga had Stella Rieck guilt (about her lover, her children, that one glass Copies sold sent her from abroad. In tender, sensitive and [email protected] of wine too many, her own body – the list goes 15,000 tentative fashion, Brokken searches these letters on) actually come from? for the woman who, during her life, had always She decides to explore, with the help of remained a stranger to him. Who was she before philosophers, writers and theologians, her own ‘Brokken brings every becoming his mother? What inspired her, what did ‘Aside from all of the conscience, analysing those damned pangs of sentence to life. The she think about? philosophical and psycho- guilt to their core, fearlessly peeling them back. Gardens of Buitenzorg is Olga turns out to be much more liberated logical theorising, Guilty She examines those moments in her past when vintage non-fiction by an and idealistic than he remembers. She enjoyed is above all a confession she has felt unnecessarily guilty and when it internationally esteemed learning foreign languages, had in-depth about what went wrong in truly has been a matter of guilt. craftsman.’ discussions with intellectuals and connected, by the writer’s past.’ In the end, she comes to the realisation that De Standaard giving sewing lessons, with the women around Tzum feelings of guilt arise from a fear of others’ her. Brokken, who has a number of wonderful judgement. ‘My guilt often appears to be a mask, ‘Jan Brokken travels books about music to his name, interweaves his ‘Inspired and literary, behind which fear lurks, fear of other people’s through history and journey with the life story of Lithuanian composer Loontjens takes the path judgement. Fear that makes me feign that comes home.’ Leopold Godowsky, who fell under the spell of to self-reconciliation.’ everything is fine. This pseudo-contentment Dagblad van het Noorden Indonesian gamelan music. NRC Handelsblad obstructs the path to honesty, and tenderness.’

Dutch Non-Fiction Spring 2021 22 23 NEW & NOTEWORTHY NEW & NOTEWORTHY

Observations about the Loneliness is a human coronavirus crisis by a talent, even if it does not professor with a can-do make you happier attitude

Jaap Goudsmit Marjan Slob Free From Corona The Empty Sky — The Start of a New Era — On Loneliness

Page count Virologist and epidemiologist Jaap Goudsmit, Page count Loneliness is the dark side of the powerful 224 professor at the Harvard School of Public Health 224 human ability to imagine other, better worlds. Publisher and scientific director of the Human Vaccines Publisher After all, when you are lonely, you are suffering Project, describes the facts and fictions among from what is not there, and you can picture Pluim Ambo Anthos Rights all the stories about the virus, infections and Rights it. Seen in this way, loneliness is inseperably Evi Hoste vaccination. He explains how the SARS-CoV-2 Orli Naamani intertwined with important human attributes: [email protected] virus mutates, possibly becomes more dangerous, [email protected] self-reflection and imagination. It is a terrible why it mainly affects the elderly, how it compares feeling, but also reveals your possibilities. At to other viruses and what vaccines there are – the same time, the price paid for experiencing always with an eye for the names of researchers loneliness is that you are painfully aware of what who matter, but also for scientific controversies is missing from your current life. and uncertainties. Marjan Slob dives into the phenomenon Goudsmit ends with a rather hopeful picture of of loneliness, entering into dialogues with the future. We are, he says, now globally capable philosophers such as Blaise Pascal, Daniel of handling pandemics: of identifying the cause, ‘A scintillating and Dennett and Simone de Beauvoir. She finds, in making tests, testing vaccines and making those quirky book about literature, music and film, images that bring the available. This is the start of a new era, in which loneliness, surprisingly concept of loneliness into focus. David Bowie ‘A book that looks we must establish that the virus is here to stay multidimensional in plays an important role throughout her story: his forward, despite the and will keep coming back with new variants. And scope. Supplely and transformations offer a helpful example of how unmistakable problems, in which we must commit to changing our life- attractively written.’ to deal with the given of human loneliness with to the future with style, vaccinating ourselves again each year and Jury report for the elegance and self-awareness. The Empty Sky is a optimism.’ building a testing society. shortlist Best Spiritual consoling, agile ode to loneliness, written with a Het Parool Book of 2021 light, supple pen.

Dutch Non-Fiction Spring 2021 24 25 A selection of recently published translations from the Dutch. RECENT For more information please go to our online database of translations: TRANSLATIONS en.vertalingendatabase.nl

Sanne Blauw Anton de Kom Geert Mak Annet Mooij Ivo van Vulpen Corien van Zweden The Number Bias: Wir Sklaven von Store forventninger. Das Jahrhundert der How to Find a Higgs Cycki. Czuła biografia How Numbers Lead and Suriname På sporet av den Gisèle. Mythos und Boson: And Other Big piersi Mislead Us europeiske drømmen. Wirklichkeit einer Mysteries in the World Europa 2000-2020 Künstlerin of the Very Small

Dutch title Dutch title Dutch title Dutch title Dutch title Dutch title Het bestverkochte boek Wij slaven van Suriname Grote verwachtingen De eeuw van Gisèle. De melodie van de Borsten. De levensloop ooit (met deze titel) Published in Published in Mythe en werkelijkheid natuur. De zoektocht van een intiem van een kunstenares naar de bouwstenen van lichaamsdeel Published in German by Transit (2021) Norwegian by Cappelen Published in het heelal Published in English by Sceptre (2020) Translated by Damm (2020) German by Büchergilde Published in Polish by Mova (2020) Translated by Birgit Erdmann Translated by Gutenberg (2020) English by Yale University Suzanne Heukensfeldt Eve-Marie Lund Translated by Other translations Press (2020) Jansen Translated by Olga Niziolek English (Polity) Other translations Gerd Busse Translated by Other translations Bosnian (Buybook), Other translations David McKay Arabic (Arab Scientific Danish (Epilog), English Finnish (WSOY) Publishers), Complex (Harvill Secker), French Other translations Chinese (Business (Gallimard), German Croatian (TIM press) Today), Czech (Host), (Siedler), Greek German (DVA), Greek (Metaichmio), Italian (Alexandria), Italian (Fazi), Korean (Okdang (Garzanti), Japanese Books) (Sunmark Publishing), Korean (Gilbut Publishing), Polish (Znak), Portuguese (Bertrand), Russian (Azbooka)

Dutch Non-Fiction Spring 2021 26 27 Recent translations Dutch Non-Fiction is distributed to international editors and publishers. Please contact non fiction specialist Mireille Berman via [email protected] if you would like to be added to our mailing list or if you wish to know more about our grants, suitable translators or about the books that we mentioned.

Nederlands Letterenfonds Editors Postbus / PO Box 16588 Mireille Berman, Dick Broer, NL – 1001 RB Amsterdam Andy Brown, Haico Kaashoek, Rob Hartmans, Michele Hutchison t +31 (0)20 520 73 00 www.letterenfonds.nl Translation and copy Michele Hutchison, Haico Kaashoek

The Dutch Foundation for Literature Non-fiction advisors supports writers, translators and literary festivals, and promotes Nynke van Verschuer, Maya Shamir, Dutch literature abroad. Translation Bertram Mourits, Regine Dugardyn, grants are available to foreign Jan Steinz, Michele Hutchison publishers to reduce the economic risks of translating as-yet unknown Cover photo authors. The subsidy covers up to Jiri Büller 70% of the translation costs, with recognized classics qualifying for up Printing to 100%. Jos Morree Fine Books /

Wilco Art Books For more information, please see www.letterenfonds.nl/en/ Design translation-subsidy Philip Stroomberg

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Dutch Non-Fiction Spring 2021 28 Is There Any Life Stranger Than Mine? The Delightfulness Of Thought ErasmusMaverick The Diary From Bergen-Belsen The CosmicComedy Radical Redemption The Globetrotters I Know Your Password Jaguarman Getting ToSleep AfterAnnex The Rudi Wester Margriet van der Heijden Sandra Langereis Renata Laqueur Frank Westerman Beatrice deGraaf Wim Willems Daniël Verlaan de Jong Raoul Bregje HofstedeBregje Benda-BeckmannBas von 2

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Anesthetist photographed by Jiri Büller in April 2020, following her night shift on the COVID-19 ward. The portrait was awarded the 2020 Silver Camera prize.