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.
Norway, a sleepy fishing village at the beginning of the 20th century. Finn tries to contact his father, out at sea. Against the background of a village that is being forced into modernisation and the inhumanity that sometimes accompanies it, a story of sadness and indefinable longing unfolds, which also smoothly incorporates gripping scenes.
‘Horse in Boots’ is Jef Aerts’ third powerful children’s novel in a row. Aerts excels in combining adventure and excitement in poetic language full of subtle metaphors. The moving friendship between a girl, a horse and an elderly woman is rendered in a succinct but richly evocative style.
In this gem of a story, Bart Moeyaert writes with surprising lightness about loneliness and dying. Gerda Dendooven’s robust green-and-black drawings capture the tenderness of death and the strangeness of this imminent demise.
Aline Sax shows how the damage inflicted by the wall carries on beyond its physical destruction.
MappaLibri
Three generations of Berliners, one wall. In ‘Crossing the Line’, Aline Sax has written an epic tale of life with the Berlin Wall. This tense sketch of a family’s struggle for survival presents daily life in Berlin in a fascinating and convincing light. The threat of the Stasi gradually permeates, and the feeling that no one can be trusted continues to reverberate throughout.
He composes exuberant poems that sometimes come flying off the rails – which is actually quite refreshing considering how stagnant the world of poetry so often is
TZUM
‘Wonderbras & Pepper Spray’ by Andy Fierens is revealing in its contemporaneity. Those who still think that poetry always sings about sublime subjects in a sacred, respectful tone will have to fundamentally rethink their opinions after reading these poems.
As horny as the pope – a new classic tragedy has been written.
De Morgen
From their rapid ascent to the top of the Vatican to their downfall: no barbarity or form of nepotism is too cruel for the Borgias. In a strange way the characters become heroic, but on the other hand we must also judge their actions. This paradox gives meaning to the whole trilogy: we love the monster just as we hate it.
‘The Bench’ is the moving story of a man overwhelmed by loneliness and anxiety. The poetic text and the atmospheric illustrations exude heartfelt melancholy and mournful solitude. Godon makes pain, desperation and yearning tangible.
Roger The Soap Knight is passionate about taking baths, scrubbing up, working in the garden (then taking another bath) and doing the laundry. But he’s also passionate about fighting. Together with Gaston, his clean white horse, he sets out to vanquish a dragon.
The drawings of Johan De Moor and the text of Gilles Dal form an organic unit. Dal’s dark, uncompromising text screams the despair of a mid-life crisis. The constantly thudding question is: is this all there is?
A creative twist that children who like a bit of the shivers will delight in no end
School Library Connection
A five-year-old boy has come along with his father to have a go on his favorite swing near the woods. But while he's been having fun swinging, a huge monster has woken up nearby from a very long nap. Children will be on the edge of their seats listening to this lively picture book, which is full of humour and suspense. This book offers the right amount of thrill, balanced with humour and the warmth of the relationship between the boy and his father.
Sam is crazy about robots and goes around telling everyone that they live on a distant planet. Nobody believes him. Fed up, he decides to create someone who does understand him. Using parts from a vacuum cleaner, a desk lamp, a radio and a rake he puts together Franky, his very own robot.
OPN. is a ritualistic performance, a composition in words, pure and simple.
Theaterkrant.nl
Moral boundaries are challenged and openly crossed, provoking the audience to agree or disagree with the statements that are being made. Opinions become questions intended to gauge the atmosphere. Strong convictions give way to insecurities, leading the performers to go along with personal attacks and extreme opinions.
A Shakespearean drama with the allure of a Quentin Tarantino film.
Cobra
Vekeman paints sharp contrasts: between love and death, between the isolated loner and village life, between the sophisticated style and the striking primitivism of the characters and between the absurd humour and the serious topics broached. The charm of this book lies in the impossible combination of contrasts, which, one way or another, are ultimately drawn together.
An ingeniously constructed book, rich in language and nuance
De Morgen
'Thieves of Passion’ is an inspired epos about the youthful years that we lose, the love we long for and the mistakes that shape our lives. Victoria has written a recognisable generation novel about nostalgia for the golden days, for the places, the people and the stories that are gone for good.
The striptease of democracy. […] This isn’t even a tragedy any more. This is how things work. Europe.
De Standaard
Following years of exponential growth, the economy collapsed in 2008. The stock market crash marked the beginning of a worldwide financial crisis that kept Europe solidly in its grasp. In his trilogy ‘Greed’, ‘Fear’, ‘Hope’, Stijn Devillé fictionalised the events to create a modern, political and economic thriller.
Narrative theatre of the most cunning kind. A cracker without frills, but with sequins.
Focus Knack
For nearly three years, Henry Morton Stanley chopped a path through a hot and impenetrable African jungle in search of the mouth of the river Congo – without knowing where he was or how much longer it would take. While letting go of the historical figure of Stanley, De Graef retains man’s journey of discovery through the history of our psychology and human-ness.
A blend of incisive, sensory perception and condensed poetic speech’
deReactor
With ‘Antigone in Molenbeek’ Stefan Hertmans has adapted Sophocles’ tragedy to our contemporary, multicultural society. Antigone is now known as Nouria, a brave young law student from the Brussels district of Molenbeek. Just as in the classic, she wants to pay her last respects to her deceased brother – in Hertmans’ version a suicide bomber – and bury his remains. But the authorities decide otherwise.
Four guards are standing in front of a high wall. They are waiting and keeping watch, without knowing why or for how long. Behind the wall is a state secret and everything is suspect, everyone a potential enemy of the state. But everything changes when one of them suddenly disappears and disrupts their unshakable rhythm.
Everything fits together perfectly in this smart study of life
De Standaard
It is the ambition of many plays to get to the essence of human existence. The theatre group BOG take this task very seriously in their self-titled play. What is possible within the short frame of existence, between birth and death?
A woman and a man are standing side by side onstage; in the background the remnants of their living room, cold and bare. Side by side, but not together, they stare into space. Is there not a spark of love or passion left?
A remarkable piece of theatre – playful, surprisingly and painfully funny as well as moving
The Guardian
1 September 2004. Chechen rebels force their way into a Russian school and hold more than a thousand pupils, teachers and parents hostage inside the gymnasium. Three days later the siege comes to a horrendous conclusion. Two surviving school children try to describe the siege in as much detail as possible to get to grips with the terrible events. But before long, their imagination takes over.
Inspector Meerhout becomes entangled in a web of intrigue, death threats, rough sex and pangs of conscience. Motives and potential perpetrators abound, but where lies the truth? ‘Dead water’ is a real page-turner, with a well thought-out plot and fascinating characters.
Her wonder on existence becomes the wonder of the reader
Jury Report VSB Poetry Prize
Maud Vanhauwaert already had won her spurs on the stage before notably debuting as a poet with her collection ‘Ik ben mogelijk’ (I am possible). ‘Wij zijn evenwijdig’ is a complex collection that at a closer look gets more and more coherent, using rhetorical strategies that easily seduce the reader. Reader and poet, walking parallel, touch each other in infiniteness.
Gradually the light nonchalant tone in Jooris’s poetry disappears and it becomes more severe. The world moves increasingly out of the frame; more and more frequently the poems are about poetry itself. In his poetic work too Jooris has often turned to the world of the arts for inspiration. 'Sculptures' is the perfect introduction to his comparatively modest oeuvre.
After World War I Edgard Demont returns physically and emotionally wounded to his native country.In search of a safe place among the confusion and destruction he finds that lovers are more effective than medication in helping him live with injuries that go deeper than the scars on his flesh.
Buelens writes a forthright terroristic poetry, although with still carefulness and subtility
Jeroen Mettes
‘Home’ investigates what makes us feel at home. Is it a place, a feeling, a language, a wireless connection or a carefully cultivated illusion? At first sight his poetry appears to be difficult, and while it can hardly be called simple, it is never uncomprehensible. Rather, it links the quest for the appropriate linguistic structure with the everyday struggle of the lyrical protagonist.
A dark fairy tale filled with troubling implications and haunting illustrations
Publishers Weekly
‘Panther’ is an unsettling graphic novel about a little girl and her imaginary feline companion. Iconoclastic in his cartooning and page layouts, subtle in his plotting, and deft in his capturing of the human experience, Brecht Evens has crafted a tangled, dark masterwork.
Piglet thinks he’s the strongest and even dares to enter into a trial of strength with Elephant. This results in a number of humorously detailed but doomed attempts to lift the ten-ton animal. The combination of dark tones, supplemented by a striking red and bright blue, make for eye-catching pictures.
Unique in the stream of books published to mark the centenary of World War One
Cobra.be
On 19 August 1914, in a matter of hours, the university city of Leuven transformed from the Belgian military headquarters into a city occupied by German soldiers. Soon after that, Leuven was reduced to ashes. Gerolf Van de Perre and Johanna Spaey portray these dramatic early days of World War I in powerful, poetic images and words.
‘Sugar’ is a comic story about life as seen through the eyes of a cat. In masterfully drawn black-and-white pictures, Serge Baeken juggles with the narrative structure and page layout in this quirky and appealing graphic novel.
A surprisingly good debut from another promising Belgian
De Groene Amsterdammer
Filip tells his four children about Great Granny, who was born almost a century before in the Dutch island colony of Java. Author Michaël Olbrechts blends a piece of family history with the wider social context and does so in a very mature and understated way, with little moments of humour and nostalgia.
Wide Vercnocke is the master of physicality: he knows better than anyone how to depict bodies, muscles and the power of the physical form. Using fine lines and full planes of colour, he creates a unique style, in which characters never look exactly the same twice.
The design is soft and clear, the jokes are cynical and as hard as nails ****
De Standaard
Sometimes the culprit, sometimes the victim, Dickie always finds himself in awkward and embarrassing situations. The contrast that develops between the stylised drawings and the often coarse jokes creates a balance that is rarely found elsewhere.
In a loose, fluid and sketch-like style, Joris Vermassen draws a story based around important themes: saying goodbye, things coming to an end, disappointment and grief. And yet ‘Mad with Joy’, like the statue of the same name, is an ode to life.
A stunning debut by an instant grande dame of the Belgian comic strip
Cutting Edge
The locals of Vierves-sur-Haynes practically worship the stag Gérard, who draws many tourists to the Ardennes village every year. When François accidentally runs Gérard over and kills him, the fat hits the fire. ‘The Miracle of Vierves’ proved Inne Haine’s credentials as a very talented teller of tragicomic tales. An extremely strong debut.
The king has twelve daughters, whom he keeps close to him. The girls feel trapped in a golden cage. Until one day they discover a secret staircase that takes them to a magic garden. In ‘The Magic Garden’ Dendooven blows a breath of fresh air through ‘The Worn-Out Dancing Shoes’ by the Brothers Grimm, and adds a feminist-tinted ending.
‘Beware of Grandma’ tells the story of a remarkable weekend. The star role goes to a quirky grandmother who travels to a hut in the forest with ten children. The story is packed with adventures and outlandish situations, each magnified by one constant: harmony between text and image.
Angela Gutmann, who writes critical reviews of top hotels as a mystery guest, is staying at the famous Taj Mahal Hotel in Mumbai when, on 26 November 2008, four Pakistani terrorists burst in and start shooting people at random. The atmosphere evoked alternates between soft and melancholic. In between the vibrant, hypnotising lines smoulders a strong suggestion of suffering, loss and the need for (self-)control. This is a book about the barbed wire beneath the skin that we call self-preservation.
In ‘Mona in Three Acts’ we follow Mona from a nine-year-old girl who loses her mother in a car accident to a thirty-five-year-old woman who watches her beloved sick father die. This is a universal story about why we become who we are.
In this adaptation of ‘Puss in Boots’, illustrator Sebastiaan Van Doninck brings tension and life to the story with his powerful compositions, beautiful watercolour tints and bright colours as needed. This classic tale-with-a-twist is a veritable feast for the eye.
Max Herder is getting married to Isabelle Fabry. A Dutchman marrying a Fleming. By expanding Max and Isabelle’s tale into a social story, Reugebrink has, above all, written a subtle, intelligent account of modern Flanders.
Verhulst at his best, perhaps even better than ever: sharp, empathetic and subtle.
NRC Handelsblad
‘Kaddish for a C*nt’ is a diptych about life in a children’s home and its consequences. It is a bitingly written punch in the stomach about children who constantly feel unwanted and unloved.
El Azzouzi describes a group of young people who call themselves ‘Drarrie’ and populate the fringes of society. What begins as an entertaining picaresque novel slowly turns into a chilling story of radicalisation when one of the boys decides to become a martyr…
Six characters try to guess what’s inside the crate they’re about to transport. They all imagine it’s some kind of exotic animal. Though they transport the crate with the greatest care, they can’t prevent it from breaking open repeatedly. And each time a smaller crate appears. A veritable feast!
A vivid depiction of what war does to ‘ordinary people’
Tzum
Mona is sixteen in 1935 when she learns the tricks of the trade as a serveuse: she is expected to use her feminine charms to coax men out of their money and water down their drinks. In the chaos of wartime, she makes a stubborn decision that will turn her friends’ lives upside down. But can she mess with people’s lives the way she messes with their drinks?
‘I Think’takes a close look at thinking from different perspectives. Ingrid Godon does this through a mixture of sketches and stylised, timeless portraits of young and old people, using a soft red to highlight details, while author Toon Tellegen works with gently philosophical reflections.
A tribe is preparing to catch a sabre-toothed tiger. Using a little white rock Olun draws the tiger on a rock, and thus manages to capture the hungry beast in the drawing. Unwittingly, he also lays the foundations for cave drawings. A humorous book full of entertaining details, that invites reading and re-reading.
Valentina, the emperor’s spoilt daughter, collects birds. When she encounters a talking bird in her dreams, a use for the empty ‘golden cage’ is quickly found. Cneut’s prints exceed all the limits of the illustrative powers of expression: this is art with a capital A.
Brilliant use of the narrative and graphic possibilities of comics
Strapazin
In the trenches, the nameless corpse of a German machine gunner attempts to construct his own history. He tries to get to grips with the insanity of war by tempering the brutal reality with stories.
Monaco, May 1968. Just before the start of the Formula 1 Grand Prix, the entire grandstand is witness to a terrible incident. Within seconds, two people are caught up in an accident that will change their lives forever. ‘Monte Carlo’ reads like a film and leaves readers with a desperate longing.
