Charles Lewinsky needs little introduction as he is a very well known author with, in the Netherlands alone, 350.000 sold copies of his epic novel Het lot van de familie Meijer on his name.
Lewinsky was born in 1946 in Zürich, Switzerland and started his career by working in theatre as a dramaturge and stage director. Later he became a producer for film, television and radio. In 1984 he published his first literary work. In a review by Michel Krielaars Het lot van de familie Meijer is described as an unequalled novel that intertwines the fate of a Swiss Jewish family with the political history of Europe. Of course the huge success of the novel pleases Lewinsky, but a strange side effect is that he is now considered as the Swiss expert on all matters Jewish. Still the author probably won’t let go of the subject as he will finish writing his next novel - which is due to appear in Germany somewhere in 2011 - as our guest in Amsterdam.
The reason he chooses our city for this final phase of the writing process might have something to do with the paralell between the political attitudes of Switzerland and the Netherlands in times of war. Both countries are small in comparison to their neighbours and always tried to hold a neutral position. However in the Second World War the Swiss Jewish inhabitants remained relatively unharmed, while in the Netherlands only very few survived.
udith Uyterlinde will interview Charles Lewinsky on the subject of Guilt and Innocence on February 14 at the Central Library (OBA). Topic of discussion is the recent translation of another (earlier) novel by Lewinsky De verborgen geschiedenis van Courtillon.
Schuld en onschuld Monday February 14, 20.30 uur, Theater van ‘t Woord Guests: Herman Koch and Charles Lewinsky, poetry by: Vrouwkje Tuinman Music by: David Uyterlinde and Jesse Evers
Dutch translations of Lewinsky’s work by Publishing House Signatuur: Het lot van de familie Meijer, translated by Elly Schippers, 2007 De verborgen geschiedenis van Courtillon, translated Elly Schippers, 2010
