This is a deceptively simple little story, adapted from a real case, of a young man who turned up on a beach in Sheerness with no identification and apparently unable — or unwilling — to talk, but quite happy to play the piano. Bernlef ties this in with the tough rural culture of the northern Netherlands, where the wind is always blowing in your face and no-one wastes their breath on talking, to make us think about the uses and dangers of silence. Very nicely done. ( )

I liked this book. It is about a boy, growing up in a family that uses very few words.
They live in the north, in a small village. Northerners are 'famous' for being distant, straight, not use more words than absolutely neccessary. Act normal, that's already crazy enough...

This boy, Thomas, is lonely. He is thought extra by a young teacher, who also teaches him how to play the piano. Nothing fancy, just some songs.

When Thomas grows older, he sees something in his father, that frightens him. He is swaving some money by working in a bicycle tire factory. When the time is there, he just gets up and leaves home. To Amsterdam. What he's supposed to do there, he has no idea about.

He meets a girl, together they spend some days. When she wants to go to Paris, he decides to go along. They meet two guys, that give them a lift to Paris.
The girl hopped on to England, but when she and Thomas reach England, she takes off, taking most of his money and his passport.

Thomas ends up in a clinic for the mentally ill. He doesn't want to talk. He feels he needs to protect himself and words are enemies. The doctors don't know what to do with him: there's nothing there to prove his identity.
Finally, when all advertisements haven't led to research, they give up hope. Fortunately the paper with advertisement and his picture in it gets to the small villae he originates from. The woman that thought him before recognizes him and calls to the hospital.
And that way, finally, Thomas returns home. He now is left with his mother, because his father drowned a few weeks earlier. Words have come back. And Thomas is going to take care of his mother from then on.
"Silence only makes you heavy, brings you down".

Impressive to read how the character of Thomas is brought to life. There's only a limited amount of pages and the character is well formed. He's a realistic boy, growing up to be man. Also very recognizable for those that are familiar with the way things are done 'up north'. ( )

In April 2005, a young man, mysteriously washed up on the beach in Kent, kept the media enthralled about his identity. Rumours and misquotations led to the belief that the unknown man was a virtuoso concert pianist who had lost his mind.

The Dutch author Bernlef has picked up this story, and with some small changes, turned this news story into a short novella. Well-written. ( )

http://boekenwijs.blogspot.com/2008/03/de-pianoman.html ( )