The Teller of Wonders wins Gouden Griffel 2025

The Teller of Wonders gives an intriguing look at a historical figure and the relationship between fact and fiction, with plenty of fun along the way.

Marco Polo, famous even in his own lifetime, has returned home after years of travel and immediately finds himself in a tricky political situation. His hometown of Venice is at war with Genoa, and the adventurous merchant is imprisoned by the Genoese.

In his luxurious cell, he receives important guests who want to hear about his experiences. Even the prison director comes by for a visit and the maid Topina secretly eavesdrops from the corridor. When she discovers that a well-known writer is locked up on another floor, she steals the keys from the guard and brings the two men together, so that they can create a book. As a reward, she is allowed to listen in on their discussions.

Lida Dijkstra (b. 1961), or Dykstra in Frisian, her mother tongue, grew up in Friesland. She trained as a museum worker in Leiden, where she later studied art history and archaeology. She worked in museums for some years, but after her daughter was born, she began to write more and more. Her work has been published in both Dutch and Frisian, and her oeuvre also includes read-aloud stories and exciting tales for readers who are a little older. History often plays a role in her writing.

Djenné Fila quickly attracted the attention of readers and critics with her illustrations for Lida Dijkstra’s Het beest met de kracht van tien paarden (2019) and Joukje Akveld’s Een kleine geschiedenis van de mensheid door dierenogen (2022), for which she won the Gouden Penseel for the year’s best illustrated children’s book.