Starring in the seventh episode of Kopje Koffie, the German book podcast about Dutch literature: writer and poet Gerda Blees. At the office of the Dutch Foundation for Literature in Amsterdam, Blees talks to Bettina Baltschev about the creation of her debut novel Wij zijn licht (Podium, 2020), which was awarded the Dutch Book Traders Prize and the European Union Prize for Literature. In January this year, the book was published in German by Zsolnay publishers, under the title Wir sind das Licht, in translation by Lisa Mensing.
Wij zijn licht
During a summer night, Liesbeth, one of the residents of the Klank en Liefde residential group, dies. Her three roommates are arrested: they urged Liesbeth to stop eating and to live on air and love. Twenty-five objects tell about this drama from their perspective.
Blees tells Baltschev about her own experiences with living with housemates, and how she got inspiration for her debut novel.
Wij zijn licht will also be translated in English, Italian, Croatian, Serbian, Slovenian and Spanish. More information can be found in the Translation Database.
Listen to this episode of Kopje Koffie via Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Amazon Music and Deezer, or via the website of the Dutch Foundation for Literature.
Kopje Koffie (Cup of Coffee) podcast
The Dutch Embassy in Berlin and the Dutch Foundation for Literature produce in cooperation with Flanders Literature and the General Representation of the Government of Flanders the Kopje Koffie (‘Cup of Coffee’) podcast, aimed at German readers and listeners. Dutch writers with a new translation in German are invited to talk about their work.
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