In this 2019 Boekenweek gift, Siebelink has his central character, the writer and retired Arnhem French-teacher Arthur Siebrandi, looking back on his literary career as an ambulance rushes him to hospital after a stroke. He reflects on his relationship with Edwin, the critic who took him up after coming across one of his stories in an old magazine in a doctor's waiting-room, and tried to mentor him through the process of getting his big, unwritten novel down onto paper (a saga of poverty, market-gardening and his father's religious obsessions); with his drinking-companion Loet, another critically-acclaimed writer whose books no-one bought; with his wife Lisette, and with his former pupil Caroline. Despite the rigid 96-page format of the Boekenweek novella, Siebelink manages to pack considerable amount of plot (and several decades of Arthur's life) into all this, and wrong-foots the reader several times as we rush ahead into the story we think he's going to tell us but doesn't.

An interesting, subtle little book that seems to be about the rewards of being a writer and being a teacher, and about the importance of having some unfinished projects to keep in sight. ( )

Nee...niets voor mij. Na paar bladzijden weggelegd. Gaat naar een mini-bieb of zo.

My first book by Siebelink and I really enjoyed it.
I enjoyed reading it, it was interesting. The story of Arthur's life (told with great leaps in time) interwoven with his ride in an ambulance after a brain haemorrhage.
I enjoyed it and actually the story was a bit too short for me. Would have liked to read a bit more about Arthur and his life. I think I'm going to look for another book by him. ( )

boekenweekgeschenk 2019 ( )