Published in 2023, the Dutch translation of Days in the History of Silence was awarded five stars in the newspaper De Standaard and was praised by Peter Terrin. Today a Dutch translation of another work is being released. Als we zingen is another extraordinary reading experience that has been compared in Norway to Lucas Rijneveld’s The Discomfort of Evening.
nordic council
The Norwegian Merethe Lindstrøm is one of the winners of the Nordic Council’s Literature Prize, the highest literary honour in Scandinavia after the Nobel Prize. She received the prize for her novel Days in the History of Silence. Thanks to the beautiful translation by Sofie Maertens and Michiel Vanhee, Dutch-speaking readers can now also read this subtly paced family drama.
days in the history of silence
Eva and Simon have three adult daughters and a comfortable home. They shared a life in that house, but there are also elements of the family history that have remained hidden from their children. Now that Simon is gradually shutting himself off from the world and retreating into his spiritual cocoon, a confrontation with the past is inevitable for Eva. That past is not just coming back, it has always been there.
when we sing
In her new novel too, Lindstrøm combines stylistic elegance with sharp psychological insight. Als we zingen is the story of a young girl on the road to adulthood, of parents who can’t offer her the care she needs, of transgressions and experiments with her own sexuality, of longing for closeness and a kind of comfort. A lament for a deceased child is always sung in a minor key, but this book also contains a great deal of warmth and humour, and is composed in an exceptionally clear and precise manner.
about the author
Merethe Lindstrøm (b. 1963) was born in Bergen, Norway. She made her debut in 1983 with the collection of short stories Sexorcisten og andre forteller and has since published short stories, novels and a children’s book. In her work, she draws inspiration from authors such as Jayne Anne Phillips. Uprooted individuals, stifled relationships and quiet madness are central motifs in her writing, which explores the marginal and the extreme. In 2008, she received the prestigious Norwegian Dobloug Prize for her literary oeuvre.
about the moderator
Ruth Joos is a journalist at VRT. She has presented various culture and news programmes (Mecca, Mezzo, Joos, De Wereld Vandaag) on the radio and, together with Wilfried de Jong, created the book programme Brommer op zee for Canvas and VPRO. In 2007 and 2008, she chaired the Gouden Uil Literature Prize. She currently presents the show De ochtend on Radio 1. She writes and conducts interviews on literature for newspapers, magazines and cultural centres in Flanders and the Netherlands.