The poetry collection Island mountain glacier, the English translation of Anne Vegter’s Eiland berg gletsjer by Astrid Alben (Prototype Publishing, February 2022) has received one of the English PEN Translates Awards. It is remarkable that the translation already won prizes before it was published. The translation was made possible with a subsidy from the Dutch Foundation for Literature.

The P.C. Hooftprijs 2022 is awarded to writer Arnon Grunberg. The jury, chaired by Agnes Andeweg, states that Grunberg has made an ‘immense contribution to Dutch literature’. Grunberg will receive the oeuvre prize, with an amount of € 60,000, in mid-May 2022 in the Literature Museum in The Hague.

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.

The Belarusian writer Sasja Filipenko will be writer in residence for two months, upon invitation by the Dutch Foundation for Literature. During his stay in Amsterdam, Filipenko will finish his sixth novel and work on a play.

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.

Five translations have been nominated for the Vondel Translation Prize 2021. This biennial prize of the Dutch Foundation for Literature awards the best English-language translation of a Dutch-language literary or cultural-historical work with a cash prize of €5,000. The winner will be announced during the online award ceremony on Thursday 10 February 2022, organized by the British The Society of Authors.

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.

Last Sunday, October 31th, Sandra Langereis received the Libris Geschiedenis Prijs for her book Erasmus: dwarsdenker (English title: Erasmus The Maverick - A Biography). The Libris Geschiedenis Prijs rewards historical books that appeal to a general audience. Langereis’ portrait of Erasmus came about with a biography grant from the Dutch Foundation for Literature, and is featured in the Dutch Non-Fiction - Spring 2021 brochure.

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.

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.

Jury chair Manon Uphoff has announced the shortlist for the European Literature Prize 2021. Five titles have been selected, all of them contemporary European novels in Dutch translation. The prize is being presented this year for the eleventh time; it goes to both the author and the translator.

The James Brockway Prize – an oeuvre prize for translators of Dutch-language poetry – has been awarded to David Colmer. This distinction, established and organised by the Dutch Foundation for Literature, is valued at 5,000 euros and will be presented (online) at the upcoming edition of the Poetry International Festival in Rotterdam, on Saturday 12 June at 3.15 p.m. (BST).

Dutch author Tommy Wieringa will be writer-in-residence at the Netherlands Institute for Advanced Study (NIAS) in Amsterdam from September 2021 to February 2022. In February he will be succeeded by the Brazilian poet Ricardo Domeneck. Both authors have been invited by the Dutch Foundation for Literature and NIAS.

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.

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.

Literary translators from Dutch into English are invited to sign up for the BCLT Literary Translation Summer School. The Dutch Foundation for Literature provides six full bursaries for (starting) translators. The BCLT Summer School will be held online, from 19 to 24 July 2021, and will focus on poetry. Please register before Monday, April 12.

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.

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.

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.

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.

Almost all publishers agree that they miss the contact they used to have with their international colleagues, chatting with like-minded people, exchanging tips about interesting titles and authors, and having conversations about what is going on in the book trade and beyond.