Surrender On Demand
Biting social critique wrapped up in a playful, lyrical style
Shellfish, the novel’s narrator and protagonist, grows up in a working-class single-parent family in a run-down seaside town where you either end up working on an assembly line or getting a job at the local distribution center. When Shellfish is ostracised by their friend group, they decide to head for the big city. With no money, housing or friends to fall back on, they find themselves at the mercy of a sexually abusive landlord, a star reporter who hires them to do odd jobs, and a flatshare with a group of social justice warriors.
Is it possible to leave your origins behind and find somewhere you feel at home? De Vries’ sharp observations are rendered in precise prose. Her style is at once archaic and associative, elegant and cynical. Every word counts, every sentence reveals a potent detail. And yet there is also room for humour and hope in this bitingly satirical coming-of-age novel. Hope, because even though Shellfish returns to their hometown at the end, they have learned an important lesson: Your spirit and freedom are yours alone – how you handle what fate throws at you is up to you.
‘I ran away – I ran fast. I turned into a street I didn’t know. I didn’t look back. It was a gorgeous day. The taxis on the ring road were singing their jagged aria of pulling up and peeling out, the wires above the trams were crackling like the death penalty. Not mine – I was alive!’
Nadia de Vries is a poet, novelist and cultural critic. Her debut novel 'De bakvis' (Uitgeverij Pluim, 2022) was longlisted for two of the biggest literary prizes in the Low Countries. It was translated to English as 'Thistle' by Sarah Timmer Harvey (The New Menard Press, 2024). De Vries also writes poetry in English.