News

Leipziger Buchmesse & Leipzig Liest

24 April 2023 - International

In 2024, the Netherlands and Flanders will jointly host the Leipziger Buchmesse, the largest public book fair in Germany. One year in advance, during the Leipziger Buchmesse 2023, the Netherlands and Flanders will show a preview of what’s to come through a diverse selection of performances and activities.

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German publishers visit Amsterdam

Preparing for the Leipziger Buchmesse 2024

12 January 2023 - International and General

From Wednesday 18 to Friday 20 January, representatives from nine German publishers will come to Amsterdam to get acquainted with Dutch literature, writers and publishers. This program takes place in the context of the Leipziger Buchmesse 2024, the largest public book fair in Germany, which will be hosted by the Netherlands and Flanders.

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Kopje Koffie #10: Lize Spit

German book podcast about Dutch and Flemish literature

10 August 2022 - International

Starring in the ninth episode of Kopje Koffie, the German book podcast about Dutch literature: Flemish writer Lize Spit talks to Katharina Borchardt and Bettina Baltschev about her book Ik ben er niet (I’m not there), published by Das Mag in 2020. In July of 2022, the book was published in German by S. Fischer, under the title Ich bin nicht da, translated by Helga van Beuningen.

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German book fairs visit Rotterdam

Preparing for the Leipziger Buchmesse 2024

7 June 2022 - International and General

From Wednesday the 8th of June until Saturday June 11th, programme directors and presidents of over ten German literature festivals will visit The Netherlands, at the invitation of Flanders Literature and the Dutch Foundation for Literature. This Fellowship takes place in the context of the Leipziger Buchmesse 2024, which will be hosted by the Netherlands and Flanders. During these intensive days, the organisers will get a broad overview of literature from the Low Countries and the opportunity to meet over fifteen writers and illustrators; all of which have upcoming German translations of their work.

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Wilma Geldof and Verena Kiefer win Gustav Heinemann Friedenspreis

‘Reden ist Verrat’ wins children’s literature prize

1 December 2021 - International and Awards

On Friday 19 November 2021, the German Gustav Heinemann Friedenspreis 2021 was awarded to writer Wilma Geldof and translator Verena Kiefer for the youth novel Reden ist Verrat, published by Gerstenberg Verlag (original title Het meisje met de vlechtjes, published by Luitingh-Sijthoff in 2018). In the Heinrich Heine Haus in Düsseldorf, the ladies received the cash prize of € 7.500. The book Het meisje met de vlechtjes was produced with a project subsidy from the Dutch Foundation for Literature, and the translation Reden ist Verrat was also supported by the foundation.

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‘Kopje Koffie’ #4 with Herman Koch

Dutch-Flamish book podcast

24 November 2021 - International and General

After Arnon Grünberg, Judith Fanto and Charlotte Van den Broeck, Herman Koch is a guest in Kopje Koffie, the German book podcast about Dutch and Flemish literature. Koch will discuss the German translation of his book Finse dagen (Finnische Tage, published by KiWi, translated by Christiane Kuby and Herbert Post) with Bettina Baltschev.

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Ton monde, plein de merveilles

Dutch children’s books ‘à l’honneur’ for a month in France

15 November 2021 - Awards, Events and International

From mid-November to mid-December, under the heading Ton monde, plein de merveilles, a presentation of Dutch culture for children and young people will take place in Montreuil, a suburb of Paris where France’s most important children’s book fair is held every year. Ton monde, plein de merveilles is a multidisciplinary collaboration between Dutch cultural foundations and other institutions that support the sector, along with French partners and the Dutch embassy in Paris.

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Deutscher Jugendliteraturpreis

Three Dutch titles nominated

17 October 2021 - International and Awards

This Friday afternoon, October 22, the winners of the Deutscher Jugendliteraturpreis 2021 will be announced at the Frankfurter Buchmesse. An exciting moment for Dutch children’s literature, since three originally Dutch books have been nominated for this prestigious German award: Vosje (Little Fox) by Edward van de Vendel, illustrator Marije Tolman and translator Rolf Erdorf, Haaientanden (Shark Teeth) by Anna Woltz and translator Andrea Kluitmann, and Het meisje met de vlechtjes (The Girl with the Braids) by Wilma Geldof and translator Verena Kiefer.

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Vondel Prize Longlist Announced

27 September 2021 - Translators, Awards and International

Dutch translations into English are currently experiencing a great boom, so much so that English translations from the Dutch are becoming as important as German translations, traditionally the main export market for Dutch literature. The jury of the Vondel Translation Prize, consisting of previous winner Michele Hutchison, poet Jane Draycott and translator Susan Massotty, were able to consider a wide range of translations published in 2019 and 2020, from works across many different genres.

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Kopje Koffie (Cup of Coffee) podcast

26 May 2021 - Events and International

The Dutch Foundation for Literature, Flanders Literature, the Dutch Embassy in Berlin and the Diplomatic Representation of Flanders are launching the new podcast Kopje Koffie (Cup of Coffee) for the German readers and audience.

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Gerda Blees wins EU Prize for Literature

We Are Light

19 May 2021 - Awards, International and Authors

Gerda Blees has been awarded the European Union Prize for Literature for Wij zijn licht (Podium publishers). The jury unanimously picked her novel as the Dutch winner of 2021. Through 25 narrators, Blees offers a new perspective in each chapter and thus describes the members of a commune who stop eating because they want to live on light and air. The novel was previously selected as Best Book of the Year by Dutch bookstores and shortlisted for the Libris Literatuur Prize 2021.

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Shortlist European Union Prize for Literature 2021

15 April 2021 - Awards, International and Authors

Gerda Blees, Jente Posthuma and Raoul de Jong are nominated for the European Union Prize for Literature. The Netherlands is one of the 14 participating counties in the EUPL 2021. The EUPL awards one winner per country.

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Helga van Beuningen awarded the Straelen Übersetzerpreis

German Literary Translation Award

29 March 2021 - Translators, Awards and International

Literary translator Helga van Beuningen has been awarded the Straelen Übersetzerpreis 2021. The prize crowns her translation of De avond in ongemak (The Discomfort of Evening) into German, as well as her life’s work as a translator in general.

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Deutscher Jugendliteraturpreis

Four Dutch books nominated

25 March 2021 - Awards, International and Authors

Four Dutch children’s books are nominated for the prestigious Deutscher Jugendliteraturpreis 2021. The jury selected 24 books in four categories from 667 submitted new publications, either written in or translated into German. The prize announcement and award ceremony will take place on Friday 22 October, during the Frankfurt Book Fair. Writer, translator and illustrator share the award.

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Three Golden Books for Paul van Loon

More than 75,000 copies sold

8 March 2021 - International and General

Children’s book author Paul van Loon has received no fewer than three Golden Books at once, a unique event in Dutch literature. A book is given the Golden status if more than 75,000 copies are sold. Van Loon has reached that target with three titles: Dolfje Weerwolfje , SuperDolfje and Weerwolfnachtbaan.

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Royal distinction for Selma van de Perre-Velleman

17 February 2021 - International and Authors

Selma van de Perre-Velleman received a Royal distinction at a festive, digital award ceremony. Dutch Ambassador to the UK, Karel van Oosterom, presented the award. Selma van de Perre, who now lives in London, was a member of the Dutch Resistance in World War Two. She is one of the few survivors of the Ravensbrück concentration camp who are still alive today and has spent the last few decades tirelessly informing younger generations about the horrors of the War.

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Dublin Literary Prize

Three Dutch titles nominated

8 February 2021 - Translators, Awards, International and Authors

Two Dutch and one Flemish author and their translators have been longlisted for the Dublin Literary Prize 2021. The longlist is nominated by libraries around the world making it a great spotlight for international writing. The first Dutch winner of this prestigious award were in 2010 Gerbrand Bakker and translator David Colmer for The Twin, which has been translated into 25 languages.

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Never Grow up!

Highlights from two years of Dutch culture for kids in the USA

27 January 2021 - International

In 2019 and 2020, the Never Grow Up! programme presented Dutch film, literature, (music) theatre and dance for young audiences throughout the US. Remarkable work from the Netherlands wowed and delighted both children and their families, and presenters and agencies at renowned events and venues including the Brooklyn Academy of Music, John F. Kennedy Center for Performing Arts, the Chicago and New York International Children’s Film Festivals, the Bay Area and Brooklyn Book Festivals.

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New Voices in Dutch Contemporary Literature Published in English

22 September 2020 - Press releases, Events, International and Authors

The Dutch contemporary writing scene is experiencing an exciting discovery moment for UK readers. Marieke Lucas Rijneveld was announced as the first Dutch International Booker Prize winner on 26th August 2020 and the work of historian Rutger Bregman is hugely popular, along with others from the increasingly influential The Correspondent. Now Verzet offers readers the opportunity to delve deeper into works by young, diverse, emerging Dutch writers translated into English for the very first time.

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International Booker Prize for The Discomfort of Evening

Rijneveld and Hutchison awarded

28 August 2020 - Awards, International, Authors and Translators

For the first time ever, a Dutch novel has been awared the International Booker Prize. The Discomfort of Evening (Faber & Faber) by author Marieke Lucas Rijneveld and translator Michele Hutchison has won this prestigious award. Rijneveld is not only the first Dutch author to be awarded this honour but also the first debut novelist and the youngest author ever to receive the International Booker Prize. The foreign rights to their novel have been sold to 21 countries, so far.

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Italian prize for Jan Brokken’s The Just

7 August 2020 - International and Authors

I giusti, Claudia Cozzi’s Italian translation of De rechtvaardigen for Iperborea has been awarded the Premio Tribùk dei Librai. This book trade prize, whose jury comprises 105 booksellers, is aimed to emphasize the important role bookshops play as cultural mediators.

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Cees Nooteboom receives high Austrian honor

23 July 2020 - Awards and International

Dutch poet, essayist, novelist, travel writer and art critic Cees Nooteboom has received the Austrian Cross of Honor for Science and the Arts, 1st Class. Ambassador dr. Heidemaria Gürer stated that she was proud to present this high decoration to ‘Der ganz Große Cees Nooteboom’.

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Rutger Bregman’s Humankind

Glimmer of hope

3 June 2020 - International and Authors

Humankind: A Hopeful History, the English translation of historian Rutger Bregman’s bestseller De meeste mensen deugen, has been published by Bloomsbury in the UK to rave reviews. The book was hailed as the new Sapiens; the first reprint followed within a week. Online events with Bregman sold out immediately. The English translation (by Elizabeth Manton and Erica Moore) will be released in the US today by Little Brown.

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Support measures

12 May 2020 - Translators, International, Authors and General

In this uncertain time in which authors, illustrators, translators and publishers face major challenges, the Dutch Foundation for Literature is aiming to give as much support as possible to our partners.

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Meet the world

New Dutch Writing & The National Centre for Writing

6 May 2020 - Events and International

As part of Meet The World, New Dutch Writing is teaming up with The National Centre for Writing for a series of conversations between writers and their translators. We can’t travel and meet in person right now but we can introduce you to the Dutch and Flemish authors and translators of some the most exciting new books of 2020.

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Formentor Literature Prize to Cees Nooteboom

1 May 2020 - International and Awards

Cees Nooteboom has been awarded the Formentor Literature Prize 2020, the most prestigious annual Spanish literature prize for an international author, worth 50.000 euro. The jury praised Nooteboom as a poet, novelist, essayist and critic of art who “has exceeded with his incessant creativity the limit proposed by literary genres”.

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Irina Leek-Trofimova on shortlist Мастер

24 April 2020 - Translators, Awards and International

Irina Leek-Trofimova has been shortlisted for the Мастер-award. She is nominated for her Russina two translations of two children’s books by Toon Tellegen, Is er dan niemand boos (The day no one was angry) and Brieven aan niemand anders (Letters to anyone and everyone).

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The Discomfort of Evening shortlisted

International Booker Prize 2020

2 April 2020 - Awards, General and International

Marieke Lucas Rijneveld and Michele Hutchison have just won a first ever Dutch shortlist nomination for the International Booker Prize with The Discomfort of Evening (Faber & Faber). The jury announced the six nominated titles online. The International Booker is awarded annually for a single book, translated into English and published in the UK or Ireland. The vital work of translators is celebrated, with the prize money (£ 50.000) divided equally between the author and translator. The winner of the 2020 prize will be announced on 19 May.

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The Letter for the King

Netflix release March 20

18 March 2020 - International, Authors and General

The Letter for the King, a new Netflix Original series based on the Dutch children’s classic by Tonke Dragt, will be released on March 20. It is the first time a Dutch novel is adapted by Netflix.

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Deutscher Jugendliteraturpreis

Dutch Nomination: I am Vincent and I am not afraid

13 March 2020 - Awards and International

The youth novel Ich bin Vincent und ich habe keine Angst by Dutch author Enne Koens, German translator Andrea Kluitmann and illustrator Maartje Kuiper is nominated for the Deutscher Jugendliteraturpreis 2020. The jury selected this title and the other nominations out of 647 new German children’s books. Prize winners will be announced at the award ceremony during the Frankfurter Buchmesse this fall.

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Longlist International Booker Prize 2020

Rijneveld and Hutchison nominated

27 February 2020 - Awards, International and Authors

The longlist of UK’s International Booker Prize 2020 is announced. Among the 13 nominated titles is The Discomfort of Evening by Dutch author Marieke Lucas Rijneveld and translator Michele Hutchison. The novel will be published by Faber & Faber on March the 19th. The International Booker Prize is awarded annually for a single book translated into English and published in the UK or Ireland. The contribution of both author and translator is given equal recognition, with the £50,000 prize split between them.

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Presstour British journalists

27 February 2020 - International and General

On 5 and 6 March, a group of British journalists will visit Amsterdam upon invitation of the Dutch Foundation for Literature. This will give them an opportunity to become familiair with the Dutch book market and Dutch authors in the context of the New Dutch Writing campaign and the ‘Boekenweek’, the Dutch national week of books and literature.

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‘Lampie’ nominated for Carnegie Medal

26 February 2020 - Awards, International and Authors

Lampie and the Children of the Sea by Annet Schaap and translated by Laura Watkinson for Pushkin Press, is nominated for the Carnegie Medal. It is the first time ever that a translation has been longlisted for this prestigious prize for children’s literature. Little Wise Wolf by Hanneke Siemensma and Gijs van der Hammen won a nomination for the Kate Greenaway Medal for illustrators.

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Vondel Translation Prize to Michele Hutchison

12 February 2020 - Translators, Awards and International

After careful consideration, a specialist jury has awarded the Vondel Translation Prize 2019 to Michele Hutchison for Stage Four, her English translation of Sander Kollaard’s Stadium IV (Van Oorschot), published by the American publishing house Amazon Crossing. The prize will be presented in London on 12 February, 2020.

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New Dutch Poetry

Maartje Smits and Simone Atangana Bekono

10 February 2020 - International and Authors

In cooperation with Poetry International the Dutch Foundation for Literature introduces two new voices in Dutch poetry: Simone Atangana Bekono and Maartje Smits. Bekono writes sweeping epistolary poems, in which she explores the relationship between body and identity. Smits’ poetry is musical, playful, feminist and innovative.

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PEN Literary Awards

6 February 2020 - Awards and International

The PEN America Literary Awards Finalists have been announced. Among them Dutch non-fiction author Frans de Waal and biographer Benjamin Moser.

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‘Amsterdam Blues’

Review of Gerard Reve in New York Review of Books by Philip Huff

23 November 2019 - International and General

In The New York Review of Books (December 5, 2019), Dutch author Philip Huff discusses two recently translated works by famous Dutch writer Gerard Reve: his classics The Evenings: A Winter’s Tale, and Childhood: Two Novellas. Both books have been translated by Sam Garrett for Pushkin Press.

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Launch of ‘New Dutch Writing’ campaign

7 October 2019 - Press releases, International and General

Under the title ‘New Dutch Writing’, Dutch literature will be presented at more than seventy festivals and events in the United Kingdom and Ireland from October onwards. By means of this major promotional campaign, the Dutch Foundation for Literature aims to introduce new generations of Dutch authors to an English-language readership. The campaign will also draw attention to literary translation.

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Cees Nooteboom Honorary Doctorate

University College London

22 August 2019 - Awards, International and Authors

Dutch poet, novelist and travel writer Cees Nooteboom will be granted a honorary doctorate at the University College London. The ceremony will take place at Tuesday 3 September 2019 at UCL in London. Nooteboom already holds honorary doctorates from universities in Brussels, Nijmegen and Berlin.

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New Dutch Writing

Campaign launched in the UK promoting Dutch literature in translation to UK readers

3 July 2019 - Press releases, Events, International and General

On the evening of Wednesday 3rd July 2019 Dutch and British representatives from the world of books and translation will gather to celebrate the launch of New Dutch Writing at The Union Club in Soho.

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Children’s book donation to Paris

13 June 2019 - International and General

As part of a special cultural cooperation between Amsterdam and Paris, the Dutch Foundation for Literature makes a donation of children’s and youth literature books to the Médiathèque Françoise Sagan in Paris. Thanks to fifteen publishers, a gift of no fewer than 92 books has been compiled, of which 72 are Dutch-language and 20 are French translations of Dutch children’s books.

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Marché de la Poésie

The Netherlands guest of honour

4 June 2019 - Press releases and International

This year, the Netherlands is guest of honour at the Marché de la Poésie in Paris, the largest poetry festival in France. The festival takes place every year at Place Saint-Sulpice in the heart of Paris. A dozen poets will be included in the “official delegation” of the festival, they will read from their work at the main stage and will be interviewed during the festival.

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Café Amsterdam

Les Phares du Nord

14 May 2019 - International

Café Amsterdam brings three evenings full of Dutch literature, debate, art and music to Paris. From 14 to 16 May, Maison de la Poésie, the most important literary stage in Paris, is transformed into an Amsterdam brown pub. Dutch fiction and non-fiction authors Jan Brokken, Adriaan van Dis, Anna Enquist, Lieve Joris, Herman Koch, Eva Meijer, Hagar Peeters, Frank Westerman, Tommy Wieringa will read from their work and talk to French authors and journalists.

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Mylo Freeman & Benny Lindelauf in the US

Bay Area Book Festival

30 April 2019 - International

From 2 to 7 May illustrator and children’s book author Mylo Freeman and children’s and youth literature author Benny Lindelauf will be in Berkeley, US to give several readings and performances at the annual Bay Area Book Festival. They will each present two panel sessions with fellow writers at the festival, Mylo Freeman will have an additional solo presentation in the Story Time Circle.

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Leipzig am Meer

20 March 2019 - Press releases, International and General

From 21 to 24 March, seven Dutch illustrators and authors of fiction, non-fiction and children’s books will visit Germany. Dutch literature will be presented in ten events at the Leipziger Buchmesse and the corresponding Leipzig Liest reading festival.

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Livre Paris

Phares du Nord

14 March 2019 - Press releases and International

From 15 to 19 March, Livre Paris will take place, France’s largest book fair. Together with the Dutch embassy in Paris, the Foundation for Literature has a stand of 16.5 m2 at the guest country pavilion ‘Le Pavillon d’Europe’, entirely dedicated to digital literature.

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Tommy Wieringa longlisted for Man Booker International Prize

13 March 2019 - Awards and International

Tommy Wieringa is one of the ‘Man Booker Dozen’ – the longlist of thirteen novels that are in contention for the Man Booker International Prize 2019 – with his novel The Death of Murat Idrissi, translated by Sam Garrett (Scribe). The Man Booker International Prize celebrates the best works of translated fiction from around the world and consists of £50,000, to be split equally between the author and the translator.

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London Book Fair

11 March 2019 - International and General

From 11-14 March Barbara den Ouden, Victor Schiferli, Mireille Berman, Agnes Vogt, Bas Pauw and Alexandra Koch will represent the Dutch Foundation for Literature at the London Book Fair (table 34V at the International Rights Center). They will have meetings with approximately 125 international publishers and editors to promote Dutch literature.

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Never Grow Up!

19 December 2018 - International and General

Throughout 2019, Never Grow Up! Dutch film, literature and performing arts for young audiences presents an abundance of Dutch artistry in the United States. A wide range of work from the Netherlands for young audiences and families will be presented and shared at festivals, conferences and other platforms, all representing a respect for young people and dedication to youth culture as an autonomous art form.

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The Netherlands and Flanders ‘focus country’ at France’s largest children’s book fair

Literary autumn marathon in France: 21 authors in five cities

22 November 2018 - Press releases, International, Authors and General

This autumn the Les Phares du Nord campaign is taking twenty-one Dutch and Flemish authors to five French cities. A great deal of attention is also being paid to Dutch-language children’s and young adult literature, a much sought-after export product. From 28 November to 3 December, the Netherlands and Flanders are the ‘focus country’ at the Salon du Livre et de la Presse Jeunesse in Montreuil, France’s biggest and most important children’s book fair.

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Cees Nooteboom wins German poetry prize

27 November 2018 - Awards, International and Authors

Cees Nooteboom has been awarded the Horst Bienek Prize for his entire poetic oeuvre, the Bayerische Akademie der Schönen Künste announced Tuesday afternoon. The Akademie praises 85-year-old Nooteboom as one of the most renowned European writers.

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Stuttgarter Buchwochen & Karlsruher Bücherschau

Follow-up campaign ‘This is what we share’

14 November 2018 - General, Authors, International and Press releases

In November, nine Dutch and Flemish authors will perform during the Stuttgarter Buchwochen and the Karlsruher Bücherschau. Their performances are part of the campaign organised in Germany in 2017-2018, as a follow-up to the successful Flemish-Dutch Guest of Honour programme at the Frankfurt Book Fair 2016. With these two, almost simultaneous festivals in Stuttgart and Karlsrühe, the ‘This is what we share’ campaign in Germany comes to an end.

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Poetry Fellowship

20 November 2018 - Events and International

Eight international poetry publishers and editors will visit Amsterdam and Antwerp, upon invitation of the Dutch Foundation for Literature and Flanders Literature. From 3-7 December they will be introduced to the Dutch field of poetry, meeting many publishers and writers.

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Non-fiction Fellowship

English Focus

6 November 2018 - International and General

Ten non-fiction publishers from the UK and USA will visit Amsterdam, upon invitation of the Dutch Foundation for Literature. From 12-14 November they will be introduced to the Dutch field of non-fiction writing, meeting many publishers and writers. The Amsterdam Fellowship is an annual programme in which the Foundation invites international literary editors to come and meet their Dutch colleagues and familiarise themselves with Dutch literature.

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‘Ditët e Naimit’ to Gerry van der Linden

international poetry award

30 October 2018 - Awards, International and Authors

Dutch poet Gerry van der Linden has received the literary prize of the International Poetry Festival Ditët e Naimit. The 22nd edition of this Macedonian festival hosted twentyfive poets from across the globe. At the opening of the festival Van der Linden received the ‘Ditët e Naimit’ award, given for one’s literary career and poetry oeuvre, from festival director Shaip Emërllahu.

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International interest in Marieke Lucas Rijneveld

21 August 2018 - International

Marieke Lucas Rijneveld’s debut novel De avond is ongemak (The Discomfort of the Evening) was a huge success in the Netherlands, going straight into the bestseller lists, even before the booksellers’ panel of television’s De Wereld Draait Door made it its book of the month. More than 40,000 copies were sold within a few months in the Netherlands, and, internationally, rights were rapidly sold to Suhrkamp in Germany and Faber & Faber in Britain and America. In Italy the book will be published by Nutrimenti, and a Korean translation is in preparation for Gimm-Young Publishers.

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Bookstan - No East, No West

21 July 2018 - International

From 4 to 7 July the literary festival Bookstan - No East, No West took place in Sarajevo for the third time, with as this year’s theme Borders and Boundaries. There was an important place for literature in Dutch at this year’s festival. Curator Geert Mak, with the support of Mireille Berman of the Dutch Foundation for Literature, invited Dutch and Flemish writers to discuss borders in culture, literature and politics.

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Flanders and the Netherlands in the spotlight at Comedie du Livre

leading literary festival in South France invites 30 Dutch authors

24 May 2018 - Press releases, International, Authors and General

No less than 30 Dutch and Flemish authors are on stage this weekend at the ‘Comédie du Livre’ festival in Montpellier, with nearly 100,000 visitors the most important literay festival in the south of France. This years 33rd edition of the festival has a special focus on the Low Countries. Both new, recently introduced authors - such as Joost de Vries, Niña Weijers, Lize Spit, Inge Schilperoord - and in France well known names are part of the invited group of writers. Many genres are represented: novels, but also graphic novels, thrillers and literary non-fiction.

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Daniel Cunin wins Brockway Prize

22 May 2018 - Press releases, Translators, Awards and International

The Brockway Prize, a biennial prize for poetry translations from the Dutch, has been awarded to Daniel Cunin. The prize was established by the Dutch Foundation for Literature and is worth 5,000 euros. It will be presented on 1 June during the Poetry International Festival in Rotterdam.

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Writing in the Lowlands

25 Portraits of writers from the Netherlands and Flanders

19 April 2018 - International and Authors

For the Dutch and Flemish presentation at the Frankfurt Book Fair 2016, the Dutch Foundation for Literature participated in the making of a series of 25 video portraits of Dutch and Flemish writers. The portraits are now available on a dedicated website.

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Dutch and Flemish literature at the Leipzig Book Fair

15 March 2018 - Events, International and General

Dutch and Flemish literature are in the spotlight at this year’s Leipziger Buchmesse, the second largest book fair in Germany, and its simultaneous literary festival Leipzig Liest. From Thursday 15 until Sunday 18 March graphic novelists and illustrators are live at work in Atelier Parade, more than ten Dutch and Flemish authors will read from their work or be interviewed on stage, and last but not least, new digital literature is introduced to publishers and the general public.

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Les Phares du Nord

9 February 2018 - Events, International and General

Over 100 Dutch and Flemish authors will present themselves at more than twenty literary festivals throughout France. All this in the context of Les Phares du Nord (The Lighthouses of the North), an intensive campaign aimed at presenting Dutch literature in France, the second largest book market of Europe and the fifth worldwide.

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Vondel Translation Prize to David McKay

14 November 2017 - Press releases, Translators, Awards and International

The Vondel Translation Prize goes to David McKay for War and Turpentine, his English translation of Oorlog en terpentijn by Stefan Hertmans. The prize, worth € 5,000, will be presented in London on 1 March 2018.

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Follow-up to Flanders and the Netherlands

Guest of honour in Germany

7 September 2017 - General, International and Press releases

‘This Is What We Share. Flanders and the Netherlands, guest of honour at the Frankfurt Book Fair’ is to have a sequel. Several dozen Dutch and Flemish authors will be making appearances in cities across Germany in the coming months, from the International Literature Festival Berlin via Leipzig and Munich to the Harbourfront Festival in Hamburg.

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Silberne Feder 2017 for Anna Woltz

5 July 2017 - International and Authors

Gips oder wie ich an einem einzigen Tag die Welt reparierte by Anna Woltz and her translator Andrea Kluitmann (published in Germany by Carlsen Verlag) has been awarded the 2017 Silberne Feder. The German association of women doctors selected Woltz’s book from a record number of over 100 submissions.

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Following The Spotlight in Frankfurt 2016

New books

27 June 2017 - International

More than 300 Dutch and Flemish books have been published in Germany last year. Especially younger authors claimed their place in the spotlight. Here are some of the books that have proven to be successful, both in terms of reviews and sales. We will be happy to discuss these or other new titles at the upcoming fair in Frankfurt.

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Jamal Ouariachi wins EU Literature Prize

25 April 2017 - Awards and International

With his fourth novel, Een honger (A Hunger), previously awarded with the Dutch BNG Bank Literatuurprijs, Jamal Ouariachi wins the European Union Prize for Literature. “Besides exploring the nature of love and examining the wisdom and folly of development aid”, the jury praised _A Hunger _ for delivering “a fierce polemic against rigid sexual mores and is above all an exhilarating tour de force.”

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Nooteboom wins Mondello Prize

19 April 2017 - Awards, International and Authors

The International Literary Prize Mondello goes to Dutch author Cees Nooteboom. The award ceremony will take place during the Salone Internazionale del Libro in Turin (Turin Bookfair) on Sunday May 21st. On this occasion he will talk with Ernesto Ferrero, Italian writer and literary critic, for an open public meeting at Sala Azzurra.

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German Prize for ‘Gips’

20 March 2017 - Awards and International

Dutch children’s author Anna Woltz and translator Andrea Kluitmann have been awarded the Katholischen Kinder- und Jugendbuchpreis for Gips oder Wie ich an einem einzigen Tag die Welt reparierte (Plaster Cast or How I Fixed the World Within A Day). The prize of 5,000 euro goes to both author and translator. Anna Woltz previously also received the Gouden Griffel, a prestigious Dutch award for children’s literature, for this novel.

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Nomination Magnesia Litera Prijs

Dutch success in Czech Republic

9 March 2017 - Translators, Awards and International

Great success for Madla de Bruin-Hüblová and her Czech translation Pole je tento svět of the Dutch novel The field by Dola de Jong. The novel is nominated for the Magnesia Litera Prize, together with work by Irish author Sara Baume, Tunesian writer Hédi Kaddou, and their translators. The classic The Field was rediscovered in 2015 by Amsterdam based publishing house Cossee, and will or has been translated into nine languages, including English, German, French and Swedish.

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Special mention Dutch app

Bolognarazzi Digital Award

6 March 2017 - International and General

The BolognaRagazzi Digital Award for the most innovative mobile app or web product for children is awarded on an annual basis by Bologna Children’s Book Fair in partnership with Children’s Technology Review. Out of 152 entries from 32 countries, the jury has chosen the winners of the Bolognarazzi Digital Award. In addition to the winners, six digital works received a special mention and some works were selected for a short-list. Een verre reis a children’s story of Dutch writer Toon Tellegen (Querido Kinderboek) produced by Yip Yip was chosen for a special mention.

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Flemish-Dutch success at world’s largest book fair

1 March 2017 - Events, International and General

The Flanders-Netherlands Guest of Honour programme at the Frankfurt Book Fair was a resounding success. In 2016, under the motto This Is What We Share, Flanders and the Netherlands organised the Guest of Honour programme at the largest trade book fair in the world. The ambitious programme ensured that more than 450 Dutch-language books were translated. The number of literary translations into German tripled compared to previous years. A new generation of writers was also successfully introduced into Germany. These are some of the conclusions of an evaluation conducted by the Flemish Literature Fund and the Dutch Foundation for Literature.

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Presentation Dutch issue Five Dials

25 January 2017 - Events and International

On February 1st Five Dials and guest editor Philip Huff will present it’s Dutch issue. The issue is devoted to introducing English-language readers to authors who haven’t yet become established in translation. It will serve as a showcase of the finest young authors writing in Dutch today.

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The Evenings

Reve revisited

22 December 2016 - International

“It was still dark, in the early morning hours of the twenty-second of December 1946, on the second floor of the house at Schilderskade 66 in our town, when the hero of this story, Frits van Egters, awoke.” Almost seventy years after this fact of fiction, the Dutch postwar classic De avonden has awoken in the minds of English readers, and how! Thanks to the the superb translation by Sam Garrett and raving reviews Pushkin Press managed to sell 14,000 copies of The Evenings. A Winter’s Tale - so far. The U.S. edition will follow soon, in 2017.

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High Impact

Literature from the Low Countries in London

15 December 2016 - Events and International

January the 17th, Dutch and UK writers come together to perform in one of the most exciting venues in London, The Tabernacle. Join best-selling authors Herman Koch and David Nicholls along with a host of all-star writers from the Netherlands and a cabaret-style evening of High Impact entertainment: readings, chat, music, food and drink.

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Guest of Honour programme an important boost to the further spread of Dutch-language literature

This is what we share - Dies ist, was wir teilen

1 November 2016 - Press releases, International, Events and General

The Dutch Foundation for Literature and the Flemish Literature Fund look back with satisfaction on the success of the Flemish-Dutch Guest of Honour programme at the Frankfurt Book Fair, which ended on Sunday. Both directors are pleased with the results already achieved, with more translations than a Guest of Honour has ever generated before and huge media attention in Germany for Dutch-language authors, translators and illustrators. They stress, however, that the process of realizing a second ambition begins only now: the Guest of Honour programme at Frankfurt will give an important boost to the international appeal and further spread of Dutch-language literature internationally in the future.

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Record number of ‘Neuerscheinungen’

Dies ist was wir teilen

14 September 2016 - International

Never before has the Frankfurt Book Fair seen a guest-of-honour country manage to clock up so many translations in the run-up to the fair. The tally for translations into German of books from and about the Netherlands and Flanders, varying from travel guides and art books to literature, has exeeded the 450 mark.

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German press visits the Netherlands and Flanders

Guest of honour FBM16

22 August 2016 - International and General

In the run up to the Netherlands and Flanders being Guest of Honour at the Frankfurter Buchmesse, the Dutch and the Flemish Foundations for Literature will receive no less than 35 German journalists from 20 till 28 August. All media will be represented: radio, television, newspapers, magazines, trade journals, and bloggers. In just a few days, the journalists will meet many writers, illustrators, publishers and (literary) organizations. No less than 120 authors/artists are involved in the three presstours, spread over 75 events at various (historic) locations in Amsterdam, Antwerp and Ghent.

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Pieter Steinz’s ‘Der Sinn des Lesens’

Reading with ALS

15 June 2016 - Translators, International and Authors

Today former managing director of the Dutch Foundation for Literature, Pieter Steinz received the very first copies of Der Sinn Des Lesens, the German translation of his book Lezen met ALS (Reading with ALS). It will be available in German bookstores mid July. Sooner than expected, as the title was announced for August. Thanks to translator Gerd Busse and to Reclam Verlag the production process was shortened.

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Dutch Olympic cultural programme in Rio de Janeiro

8 June 2016 - Press releases, Events, International and Authors

In the period leading up to the Olympic Games, the Dutch cultural programme HOBRA will be held in Rio de Janeiro from 11 to 31 July. Ten Dutch and ten Brazilian artists and other creative professionals will form teams of 2. Each duo will create a new work within three weeks. The results will be presented to the Brazilian and international public during a large-scale concluding event.

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Festival in Cologne entirely devoted to children’s and YA literature from the Netherlands and Flanders

This is what we share - Dies ist, was wir teilen

24 May 2016 - Press releases and International

This year’s International Children’s and Young Adult Book Weeks in Cologne (KiBuWo), from 25 May through 12 June, are entirely devoted to literature from the Netherlands and Flanders. During the festival, ten authors will be giving bilingual readings, and there are theatre performances as well as a children’s book cinema with work read aloud and films including Minoes, Erik of het klein insectenboek and Labyrinthus. Simultaneously the exhibition ‘Schau mich an’ opens in the Museum für Angewandte Kunst, showing work by Toon Tellegen and Ingrid Godon combined with photographs by August Sander.

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Comics festival Erlangen focuses on Flanders and the Netherlands

18 May 2016 - Press releases, Events, International and Authors

More than ten Dutch-language graphic novelists have been invited to the 17th International Comic-Salon Erlangen, the most important international comic festival in Germany. Recent work by all the authors has been translated into German. Flemish and Dutch graphic novels will be featured in two exhibitions, a live drawing workshop, a special magazine, ‘Parade’ that will be printed on the spot on the Risograph and in loads of readings and encounters.

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US tour Ilja Leonard Pfeijffer

Presenting La Superba

10 March 2016 - Translators, Events, International and Authors

Dutch author Ilja Leonard Pfeijffer will be on book tour in March visiting Washington DC, New York, Houston and Dallas to present the English translation of his novel La Superba. The book was translated by Michele Hutchinson and published by Deep Vellum.

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Es geht los!

Guest of honour programme kicks off in Germany, coinciding with the opening of Dutch Book Week

9 March 2016 - International, Authors and General

Appearances today, 10 March, by Saskia de Coster and Connie Palmen at the literary festival lit.Cologne mark the start of an extensive range of literary programmes presenting the Netherlands and Flanders as joint guest of honour at the Frankfurt Book Fair. In total more than 120 Flemish and Dutch authors will make appearances in seven German cities. The kick-off in Cologne coincides with the opening of Book Week in the Netherlands.

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Mairisch goes Amsterdam

3 December 2015 - International, Authors and General

In February 2016, the entire team of the Hamburg-based publishing house mairisch will be moving to Amsterdam for a month. This is related to the joint guest of honour status of the Netherlands and Flanders at the Frankfurt Book Fair in October 2016.

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German literature festivals visit the Netherlands & Flanders

Preparations Frankfurt 2016

4 November 2015 - International

Eleven managing directors and program coordinators of German literature festivals will visit Amsterdam, Rotterdam, The Hague and Antwerp from 9-14 November 2015. The ‘Ehrengast’-program of Flanders & the Netherlands at the Frankfurter Buchmesse 2016 will be accompanied by an extensive programme of readings and appearances, beginning March 2016 during LitCologne festival in Cologne.

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New non-fiction specialist

30 October 2015 - International and General

As of 1 November Mireille Berman will be non-fiction specialist at the Dutch Foundation for Literature. Her task is to promote Dutch non-fiction abroad, a job performed over the past eighteen years by Maarten Valken, who has now reached retirement age.

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Dutch authors and film directors in Brazil

4 August 2015 - Press releases, Events, International, Authors and General

From 26 August through 5 September, seven Dutch authors will take part in a ten-day festival in São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro, organized by the Dutch Foundation for Literature and EYE International, with the theme of Dutch literature and film.

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Anna Woltz wins LUCHS-award

8 July 2015 - Awards and International

The German newsmagazine Die Zeit and Radio Bremen have awarded Anna Woltz the July LUCHS-award for her young-adult novel Meine wunderbar seltsame Woche mit Tess, translated in German by Andrea Kluitmann and published by Carlsen Verlag.

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Germany theme of the Dutch Bookweek 2016

11 June 2015 - Events, International and General

In the year in which the Netherlands and Flanders will jointly present themselves as guests of honour at the Frankfurter Buchmesse, the Dutch Boekenweek (Bookweek) aims at Germany, under the motto Was Ich nog zu sagen hätte. This was reported today by CPNB in a press release.

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Verse smuggle

Poesiefestival Berlin

19 May 2015 - Events, Authors and International

This year, the Poesiefestival Berlin has invited six Dutch-speaking poets from the Netherlands and Flanders to participate in the VERSschmuggel (“verse smuggle”) translation workshop.

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International Literary Translation Initiative Award

Dutch Foundation for Literature nominated

19 March 2015 - International and General

Each year the London Book Fair hands out awards in a number of categories as part of its International Excellence Awards program. We’re very proud to announce that the Dutch Foundation for Literature has made the shortlist for this year’s International Literary Translation Initiative Award.

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TLS praises Wieringa

6 March 2015 - International

In the February 20th edition of TLS, writer Claire Lowdon praises Tommy Wieringa’s These Are the Names, the third of his novels to be translated into English. She compares the novel favourably to Cormac McCarthy’s The Road:

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Else Otten Übersetzerpreis für Bettina Bach und Rainer Kersten

für ihre Übersetzungen von Arjan Visser und Dimitri Verhulst

17 December 2014 - Press releases, Translators, Awards and International

Die Jury des Else Otten Übersetzerpreises hat beschlossen, den Preis 2014 zwei Übersetzern zu verleihen: Bettina Bach für ihre Übersetzung von Hotel Linda von Arjan Visser, im Februar 2014 unter dem Titel Der blaue Vogel kehrt zurück erschienen bei Deutscher Taschenbuch Verlag in München, und Rainer Kersten für seine Übersetzung von De laatkomer von Dimitri Verhulst, im April 2014 erschienen als Der Bibliothekar, der lieber dement war als zu Hause bei seiner Frau bei Luchterhand Verlag in München.

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Marente de Moor wins EU Prize for Literature

8 October 2014 - Awards, International and Authors

This morning at the Frankfurt Book Fair Marente de Moor was announced the winner of the European Union Prize for Literature 2014 for her second novel The Dutch Maiden (De Nederlandse maagd), published by Querido.

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Interview with WiR Carrasco

31 July 2014 - International, Authors and General

Jesús Carrasco talks about the overwhelming success of his debut Intemperie (Dutch translation: De vlucht) in a video that Marieke Kessel made during his period as a writer in residency in Amsterdam. During his residence Carrasco worked on his second novel: “it’s an investigation about the relationship between a man and the land. If you take away all the things, everything that sustains him, affections, material goods, safety - then what happens? What remains of the man as a human being?”

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Words Without Borders presents

Taboos: New Dutch and Flemish Writing

5 May 2014 - International and Authors

Words without Borders dedicates a special issue of its webmagazine to New Dutch and Flemish Writing, under the title ‘Taboos’. This issue presents short prose exploring the intrusion of the forbidden, the illegal, the unspoken into people’s lives and homes. Editors Sanneke van Hassel (writer) and Victor Schiferli (Dutch Foundation for Literature) selected work from fourteen authors, most of whom grew up in the prosperous years that the Netherlands enjoyed from the mid-1970s until the 2008 financial crisis.

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Grunberg and Slauerhoff reach the final

Best Translated Books Awards

16 April 2014 - International

The English translations of Tirza by Arnon Grunberg (tr. Sam Garrett for Open Letter Books) and The Forbidden Kingdom by Jan Jacob Slauerhoff (orig. Het verboden rijk, tr. Paul Vincent for Pushkin) have reached the finals of the 2014 Best Translated Book Awards in Fiction.

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Vondel Translation Prize

awarded to David Colmer

17 February 2014 - Translators, Awards and International

The Vondel Translation Prize 2013 has been awarded to David Colmer for The Misfortunates (Portobello Books), his translation of De helaasheid der dingen by Dimitri Verhulst. The award ceremony took place at Europe House in London on Wednesday 12 February 2014.

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New Hella Haasse translations successful in England

7 December 2012 - International

At the last Frankfurt Book Fair, the Dutch Foundation for Literature presented a Dutch Classics brochure. One of the many titles in it was Oeroeg by Hella S. Haasse. Even though it was written in 1948, it is still considered one of the highlights of her literary career. This fall, Portobello Books published a new translation by Ina Rilke, The Black Lake, a reference to the black lake in which Oeroeg’s father drowns.

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The Guardian reviews Nescio

24 May 2012 - International

Amsterdam Stories by Nescio, translated by Damion Searls and published by NYRB Classics, is reviewed in The Guardian. The author Nicholas Lezard compares Nescio to his near-contemporary Robert Walser: “He found little time for writing, and wrote little: but what he wrote came out of the love of it, or the urgency to express something. And that something is, very often, about the grand scheme of things, and our insignificance within it – which would in itself not be the most earth-shattering of news, were it not for the fact that there is still something rather wonderful, something holy, about this insignificance.”

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Al Galidi wins European Union Prize for Literature

Translation rights sold to Czech and Bulgarian publishers

18 November 2012 - Awards and International

On Monday, 28 November, Rodaan Al Galidi is to receive the European Union Prize for Literature 2011 for his novel De autist en de postduif (The Autist and the Homing Pigeon, published by Meulenhoff / Manteau). He is one of twelve European authors to receive this year’s prize. This European prize comprises € 5000 and the possibility of having the book appear in other languages. The translation rights of the novel have already been sold to the Czech publisher Dauphin and the Bulgarian publisher Balkani.

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