Flanders Literature helps publishers and festival organisers find that one particular title or author that is the perfect fit for their list or audience. So take a good look around, we present a selection of the finest literature from Flanders. If you like what you see, please get in touch with us for further information.
This play delves into the forgotten connections between the first atomic bomb and the colonial history of Belgium
etcetera
Stijn Devillé brings together four contrasting decors and eras surrounding the bombing of Hirsohima: New York 1933, London 1944, Hiroshima 1945 and Congo 2025. This play lays bare the political and social responsibility for the trade in raw materials. Devillé sheds light on the political backroom music, the moral arguments and the human suffering that nuclear weapons have left to us. This play is highly topical.
In the extraordinarily beautiful play ‘Desire’, four people long to be seen. *****
NRC
Four queer men share their (unfulfilled) longings, thoughts, doubts and fears with each other and with the audience. It is tightly composed and divided into three parts, the central part also deals with the antithesis of desire: fear and sorrow. The language and phrasing of ‘Desire’ are simple but powerful, while the composition and repetition form a polyphony and evoke images that feel both intimate and universal.
A clever piece of young-adult theatre about the dangers of a social-engineering ideal taken too far
pzazz
In ‘A Quick Back-and-Forth’, Christine, Hekuran and Susanne warmly welcome the audience to the pre-launch of Worth It 2.0 – The Next Step, their biggest and most experimental project of all time. It's a satirical thought experiment for teenagers and adults about the route to success. The play carries techno-optimism and self-improvement to their most extreme and horrifying consequences.
A poetic, quirky play, inspired by the Orpheus myth
Theaterkrant
Lucie and her partner Andreas drive to the south of France together. On the way, Lucie looks back at the family holidays of their childhood. For a long time you think Lucie and Andreas are together in the car, until it suddenly transpires that Andreas is not in the passenger seat. ‘Faren’ is a tale of sorrow and mourning, and of how, despite the presence of such intense emotions, you must dare to look ahead.
The book is wonderful, which I know is strange to say about grief, but feeling and writing are two different things and the text is swift and lean and moving.
Siri Hustvedt
In 2017 artist couple Fleur Pierets and Julian Boom started out on a plan to marry each other in all twenty-two countries where it was legal, at the time, for two women to wed. During the wedding in Paris, Julian became unwell on the steps to the town hall. She turned out to have several tumours in her body and only a few weeks to live. In this extremely frank debut, Pierets shares her most intimate memories of Julian and writes about the grief, pain and hopelessness she felt after losing the woman she loved.
Immensely exciting and heartrending. De Sterck writes in pithy, dazzlingly rich language.
Boekwijzer
Amber goes to live on her own in an old labourer’s cottage that fifty years earlier was the scene of the tragic disappearance of a seven-year-old girl. Sonja was never found. Amber becomes haunted by the case and old wounds are opened up. In a mixture of vivid Flemish colloquial speech and poetic sentences, De Sterck rolls out a well-balanced plot with an exceptionally tragic ending that tears at the heartstrings.
The coolest, funniest and craziest children’s book of 2024
Wonderland by Alice
During a bank robbery, Wille’s father tries to stop the criminal Miss Halitosis, but with her poisonous breath she melts him without a second thought. Wille is left orphaned, with only his books to comfort him. Fortunately he meets two new friends, and they work out a plan to thwart the seemingly unstoppable Miss Halitosis. In sparkling prose and with a great sense of absurdist humour, Van Gas tumbles Wille out of each adventure into the next.
The neighbourhood wants a party. Not just any old party – no, a party with children’s slides and fireworks, swimming and skating. But what to do about Hans? In this upbeat picture book, Bouke Billiet has the diverse cast of neighbours speak with one voice, creating a wonderful atmosphere of togetherness. Marjolein Pottie presents spreads packed with fun details and full of exuberant colours, set in a contemporary urban environment.
This book more than lives up to its ambitious title.
Mappalibri
Tom Schamp takes readers on a surprising journey through the alphabet, in colourful pages that guarantee hours of viewing pleasure, both to children and adults. Every letter is given a double-page spread, filled with small pictures, bits of text and word games. In contrast to most ABC books, the words pictured don’t necessarily start with the letter in question. Schamp is unbeatable at capturing the visual beauty of letters.
Hell Herders, creatures that are half-human and half-reptile, have enslaved humanity for many years and they hold sway in the Towers of Hell. Lexa has only ever lived in Level 5, the vast fifth floor of the towers, where existence is tough. When she finds herself, completely unexpectedly, in the very comfortable Level 1, nothing is what it seems. Revolution is brewing in the Hell Towers. But who is on the right side? And why does Lexa turn out to be so important?
In Chief Dragon’s Camp Savage Jonnie can be his wild self, and you quickly deduce that Jonnie is often branded ‘too wild’. The stylish and dynamic illustrations are a jumble of colourful collages, full of crazy characters in brightly contrasting colours and a challenging interplay of lines. The strength of this book lies in what happens between the lines and the brushstrokes: Jonnie’s search for who he is, in a context in which he can be himself.
Spit knows how to squeeze your throat again. A book without compromises.
NRC Handelsblad
In this deeply personal work, Spit reflects on her difficult relationship with her mother, who is terminally ill. Spit’s mother had long struggled with alcohol and found communication very difficult, often expressing a desire to disappear. Growing up this way, Spit internalized some of these patterns, resulting in a complex relationship with her own body. ‘Autobiography of My Body’ is a deeply moving, confrontational, yet ultimately loving exploration of a daughter’s attempt to understand both her mother and herself.
Everybody has an opinion about Roma, but few people really know them. Their history is very complex, powerful and tragic; their diversity is so vast that no single flag can encompass it. One cannot speak of ‘the Roma’ as a single entity, there is not one Roma community. There are many, and they differ greatly from one another.
Julie is a 37-year-old performance artist with a broken relationship to deal with when her father offers her a sum of money. He advises her to have her eggs frozen and to invest in real estate. Julie is not planning simply to accept that role, however. In a radically honest and vulnerable quest, her attempt to liberate herself results in a collective family breakdown.
‘Handsome Jo’ is a nuanced novel about how to be yourself. It is not a ‘heavy’ novel, but you’ll find humour and levity everywhere in it.
Bazarow
Jo Stormvogel is a striking figure. He grows up in a large Catholic family in postwar Flanders. As a young man he attracts the attention of a monk, who abuses the boy’s trust with sexually transgressive behaviour. As an adult, Jo exlores his sexuality, throws himself into the vibrant nightlife of the 1970s and meets Felix, with whom he will share his life. With his powerful allure, the impulsive protagonist seems born lucky, but ultimately he proves no match for the adversity inflicted on him by time.
A racy novel with a tight narrative arc, rhythmical language and witty observations.
Humo
As the wife of the successful author Georg Sanctorum, Sandra places her life entirely at his service. She is his manager, agent, editor and muse. One morning she finds a letter in which Georg puts an end to their twelve-year relationship. Sandra breaks down and decides to change her life radically. With iron discipline, she will force herself into debauchery. From now on she’ll smoke and drink every day, jump into bed with strangers and be lazy.
The author approaches everything that is human with a loving, interested, serene objectivity. –
Gazet Van Antwerpen
In sixteen short stories, Roger Van de Velde shines a kaleidoscopic light on a time spent in prison, where, as a journalist he ended up after forging prescriptions for Palfium, a painkiller to which he was addicted. With a sense of the grotesque, he manages to describe his fellow inmates and comical situations that reveal all the many layers of a character.
Not a chapter goes by without Terrin opening the door to a philosophical issue. *****
Het Nieuwsblad
Professional photographer Simon travels to Italy with his daughter Romy to scatter the ashes of his deceased ex-wife Carla in the sea. That same day a mysterious sum of money is paid into his bank account. The money serves as compensation for the fact that he cannot return to his former life. He goes in search of a way out.
An exhilarating, emotional novel whose relatable characters and exciting plot draw you in right from the start *****
London Literary Scouting
Sixty-year-old cardiologist Charles Dumont is on the point of boarding a flight to Naples. He has an appointment there with his past. Thirty years ago his first wife, Sylviane, mother of his daughter Claudia, disappeared without trace. In a rich and expressive style reminiscent of Italian cinema, Dangre focuses on a stormy relationship and examines the destructive (or liberating?) urge to break away from your own life.
‘Wolf’ is a book you’ll want to read at one sitting.
De Volkskrant
Wolf travels as far north as his bank balance will allow, without telling anyone where he is. Wolf wanted to be a writer; his sister Lara became one. In the autobiographical ‘Wolf’ she looks back, ten years later, on their childhood in a family with five children, on the turbulent months after Wolf’s disappearance and the even more turbulent years after his death. A rock-solid book about grief and profound sorrow.
Instagrammable. What Art Tells Us about Social Media
The unexpected connection between ancient arts and social media. Highly recommended.
De Morgen
In ‘Instagrammable – What Art Tells Us About Social Media’, Koenraad Jonckheere delves into the surprising similarities between 2,500 years of European art history and our modern image culture on social media. He reveals how centuries-old ideas about observation, registration and imagination continue to influence how we deal with digital images even today.
A book to buy sight unseen, by a great graphic novelist
9e kunst
In ‘The Chosen One’, the biblical story of Jacob runs in parallel with that of a contemporary story of a man who sacrifices others for his career. It presents a critical look at what success can mean, with no shortage of the dark humour that Spruyt has made so much his own. An exceptionally valuable extension to his oeuvre.
Unusual graphic approach. Perfect example of a promising debut
9e kunst
Johanna finds herself in the luxurious Hotel Paradiso, the hereafter in the form of a resort, complete with goodie bag, segway tour and information points. But it soon turns out that even after death, life isn’t that simple. The visually interesting style of ‘Hotel Paradiso’ marks Fin Ilsbroekx out as an up-and-coming talent.
Dystopolis is the last city on earth. Abdulla is a young and ambitious police intern who dreams of the impossible: vanquishing the Cannibal. Can he make the difference? Miel Vandepitte creates a dystopic world full of outlandish creatures and breathtaking cityscapes. ‘Dystopolis’ could be called pulp, but if so then it’s pulp of the graphically fantastic kind.
In the midst of the information overload we need to develop a new attitude that requires a critical point of view that we have to keep on training to learn to ignore the information that does not deserve attention. Ignaas Devisch shows how such a well-balanced ignorance can reclaim a well-informed position in the world. It is high time to stop informing ourselves - and democracy - to death.
In her highly anticipated second prose work, award-winning author Charlotte Van den Broeck explores the lost Tasmanian tiger’s legacy. Drawing on the tragic ecological history of the Tasmanian tiger, she reflects on loss, on hope in times of climate crisis, and the destructive and restorative powers of stories.
In ‘Mater’ eight women manoeuvre through the present and the past. Accompanied by a narrator and a choir, they resist stereotypes and expectations, and play with the idea of an alternative future. Sharp social criticism and sparkling humour go hand in hand. In resounding language that balances between poetry, drama, myth and fairy tale, ‘Mater’ is an ode to darkness and to change.
Verplancke surprises and astounds with this witty parable that goes against the flow.
De Morgen
Rosa the salmon can’t decide whether to calmly stay where she is or leave for the unknown. In the end the itch in her tail pushes her on her way. Her daring brings her both adventure and emotion. ‘Rosa the Very, Very Brave Salmon’ urges us to be headstrong and to show the bravery it takes to swim against the flow and see what that audacity brings.
Flanders’ sharpest and most linguistically skilled comic-strip humourist
Enola
Bart Schoofs (who signs his work ‘brt’) takes aim at our society both extensively and with great precision. Although he mainly pokes fun, with obvious pleasure, at anti-wokers, conscious and unconscious racists or climate-change deniers, nobody is safe from Schoofs, not even himself.
A selection from a series of vertical comic strips created between 2017 and 2022, the beautifully RISO-printed ‘Thighbootman’ dives deep into Wide Vercnocke’s universe. That universe is almost boundless, aside from the format of the strips. His work is unapologetically fantastical and subversive, as is his humour.
This heart rending book is one of the most moving graphic novels of 2024. A visual masterpiece
Stripweb
After a year of trying to get pregnant, the verdict is harsh for Ben and Mina: they won’t succeed by natural means. They start out on a long and demanding course of ICSI treatment. Meanwhile Ben, an illustrator, grapples with his feelings by drawing a world of clay, where the creation of a child fails too. In pencil and in orange and blue ecoline, Leroy creates a loving and moving portrait of two people who despite everything keep rediscovering each other.
‘Sister!’ is an unusually forceful theatrical thriller. ★★★★
Knack Focus
‘Little Sis!’ is typical of Peter De Graef’s work: philosophical, poetic and at the same time painstakingly composed. Hildegard’s story stimulates our imaginations and explores the boundaries of recognisable experience.
A fully rounded, spot-on comedy, taken straight from the modern day.
Theaterkrant
‘Gen X Has Left the Chat’ is a tightly composed comedy in which different generations try to engage in a conversation with each other, but every attempt ends in chaos.
In all its most intense moments there is room for nuance, warmth and solidarity, and an invitation to think for ourselves.
Theaterkrant
‘Wilderness’ is a family portrait about extreme poverty and the decision to shape your own life, even if that sets you in opposition to those who are closest to you. Mariën makes us reflect on ethical dilemmas, rich versus poor, city versus nature, and the way that our choices influence others.
It shimmers, crackles, sparks and blazes between Lady and Lord MacBeth.
Theaterkrant
The blood-soaked lust for power and inescapable downfall of the Scottish Macbeths are familiar the world over. In Tom Lanoye’s new version, Lady MacBeth comes more clearly into the foreground and an absolute but also tragic love between the MacBeths lies at the root of their calamity.
Brother is mad about birds. And he’s ill. So ill that Sister is afraid he’s going to die. Since he wants to know what happens if you die, Sister invents the Land of Yesterday, where you fly to if Death comes to fetch you. Their dead dog Bobby is happy there too, so they decide to throw a party for the anniversary of his death. But an uninvited guest shows up: Death. Melancholy and poetic, funny and sad, ‘Say Hello to the Geese’ is a moving story about the inevitable.
Director and playwright Freek Mariën has understood perfectly what it is that makes the difference between entertaining and outstanding youth theatre.
Het Nieuwsblad
Three indeterminate figures, ‘the one’, ‘the other’ and ‘one more’, live together at an indeterminate place. Every day brings the same sequence of habits and everything is played out under the all-seeing eye of ‘The Heap’. Freek Mariën presents a world in which private property is non-existent, even as an idea. The result is an imaginative and playful piece of work that raises questions about ownership, greed and charity.
A surprising new Flemish voice. Restrained and pure.
Jaapleest
For the second summer in a row eleven-year-old Maia and her parents go to a holiday park called Hotel Kosmos. But Maia’s parents are not getting along well. As her parents struggle to save their relationship, Maia finds new friends. In this moving and tragicomic book, Schmitz succeeds in incorporating Maia’s sorrow into a real holiday story.
,ROSA.’ shows that a play about history need not be dry, documentary theatre, and that a great diversity of source material is compatible with uncompromising captivation.
Theaterkrant
In a thrilling montage, ,ROSA. delves into the life and work that lie behind the modern image of Rosa Luxemburg as a public figure, salvaged after her death by political movements on both the left and right. The script by Koen Boesman allows her unbending idealism and turbulent love life to speak for themselves, without being a hagiography or illuminating only the darker sides of her political engagement
Strange and wonderful, and ultimately very very memorable
School Library Journal on ‘I Wish’
Ingrid Godon and Paul de Moor explore the life and work of the famous Belgian painter James Ensor through a unique lens. The book immerses readers in Ensor’s thoughts with poetic snapshots of his life, from his childhood experiences with masks in his mother’s gift shop to his enduring fascination with light. The narrative stimulates curiosity rather than providing straightforward information. Godon’s enchanting illustrations, inspired by Ensor, feature masks, skeletons, and grotesque faces, showcasing her artistic prowess.
Sometimes the very best books originate at the interface between fiction and nonfiction.****
De Standaard
Ten factories open up their doors for once. Pieter Gaudesaboos and Bart Rossel show how ten objects are made, each time in eight clear steps. While the text sticks to reality, the pictures steal the show with their playfulness and fantasy; the factories run flat out to produce everyday and familiar objects. The sparkling colours, delightful compositions, humour and rich details in the illustrations hold your attention throughout.
‘Down Day’ does not avoid difficult subjects, and perhaps for that reason it’s an exceptionally comforting book.
De Standaard
Gaston struggles with the loss of his best friend after accidentally dropping Fons's hamster. Feeling alone as his parents focus on fertility treatments, he finds comfort in a duckling. As the duck grows, so does his mother’s tummy. But then Gaston learns of his unborn sister's death. Dieltiens tells this story of loss with great feeling, with perfectly chosen words, plenty of room for suggestion and wonderful characterization.
Penetrating voyage to discover maternal intuition, a lost natural instinct and a sense of home. ****
Humo
A pregnant writer decides to make one final trip before the baby arrives. She drives along the Danube in a campervan with her boyfriend Leon, from its source in Germany to its mouth in Romania. Reflecting the way the author is subject to transitions, the book switches between reporting and lyricism, between mythology and cultural history, between the diaries of a mother, author and traveller. Van Offel allows us to share in her quest, which, because of the echoes of centuries-old fairy tales and stories, is universal as well as intensely personal.
An exceptionally good standard work to leave lying around everywhere in classrooms and living rooms
Denkkaravaan
Barbara De Munnynck brings 100 remarkable events of world history to life in a fascinating way. The stories include interesting facts and fun anecdotes about well-known and less well-known events or people. The narrative tone, the powerful illustrations of Isabelle Geeraerts and the humour in both text and image make ‘A Small World History in 100 Big Dates’ an excellent book for generating enthusiasm for history and research in readers young and old.
Silence, as Marieke De Maré shows in her second novel, can say more than a thousand words. *****
Knack Focus
Simone and Andrej have lived for many years in a house on the edge of a sparsely populated village, looking out on their sheep barn. In ‘I’m Going to the Sheep’ we look at the couple’s small world over a period of two weeks. Shimmering through the daily routine the reader can detect fairy tales, magic realism and a touch of absurdist humour. De Maré succeeds in touching a sensitive chord with her poetic parable about life, parenthood and love.
Refined, layered, bloodcurdling, a book about sensuality and desire on the one hand and purity on the other. ****
Bazarow
Marieke and Vik have been a couple since they were fourteen and are devoted parents to their twin daughters Hasse and Lotte, who were the result of IVF treatment. Years later, Marieke mourns the loss of sexuality. The combination of her sexual frustrations and her exploratory, practical nature prompts Marieke to undertake research into male sex workers. In ‘Gentlemen’ Patricia Jozef frankly investigates female desire and sexual morality. What happens when we reverse traditional roles and expectations?
A bittersweet story that has a serious undertone, yet whose development is nevertheless full of humour
Het nieuwsblad
On the day of his first communion, Ernest loses his family. He renounces his early faith and is intent on revenge. When Brother Rémy asks him to continue the beatification of Sister Merita, Ernest sees in the task a chance to personally settle accounts with God. In Rome he is helped by scammers Livio and Stefania. But then the case miraculously takes off and the process of canonization gets completely out of hand.‘Santa Subito’ is a compelling tragicomic story with ingenious plot twists, colourful characters and laconic irony.
