The Discomfort of Evening

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The Discomfort of Evening
De avond is ongemak (Marieke Lucas Rijneveld).png
First edition cover
AuthorMarieke Lucas Rijneveld
Original titleDe avond is ongemak
TranslatorMichele Hutchison
CountryNetherlands
LanguageDutch
Set inNetherlands
PublisherAtlas Contact
Publication date
31 January 2018
Published in English
5 March 2020
Media typePrint (hardback and softback), e-book, audio
Pages271
AwardsInternational Booker Prize (2020)
ISBN978-90-254-4411-2 (First edition softback)
LC ClassPT5882.28.I49 A96 2018

The Discomfort of Evening (Dutch: De avond is ongemak) is the debut novel by Dutch writer Marieke Lucas Rijneveld, published in 2018. On 26 August 2020, Rijneveld became the first Dutch writer to win the £50,000 International Booker Prize, shared jointly with the novel's English translator Michele Hutchison.[1]

Summary[]

The Discomfort of Evening concerns the life of ten-year old Jas, a Dutch girl who lives with her Reformed family on a dairy farm in the Netherlands. Jas is grieving the death of her brother Matthies, who died accidentally in an ice skating accident. His death drives further instability in the family and deteriorates Jas' mental health.

Background[]

The novel became a bestseller upon its release in the Netherlands. It has been the subject of controversy due to its graphic depictions of animal abuse and adolescent sexuality.[1][2] It was first published on 31 January 2018 by Atlas Contact in the Netherlands.[3] It was translated into English by Michele Hutchison and first published on 5 March 2020 as The Discomfort of Evening by Faber and Faber in the United Kingdom (ISBN 978-0-571-34936-4).[4] Hutchison's translation was later published in the United States by Graywolf Press on 18 August 2020 (ISBN 978-1-64445-034-5).[5]

Reception[]

According to book review aggregator website Book Marks, The Discomfort of Evening received mostly favourable reviews. From the 22 reviews collected, 11 were classified as "rave", 4 as "positive", 6 as "mixed" and 1 as "pan".[6]

In its starred review, Kirkus Reviews wrote, "Rijneveld's extraordinary narrator describes a small world of pain which is hard to look at and harder to ignore."[7] Publishers Weekly wrote, "Like a scene in a Bosch painting, the macabre material is loaded with sexual transgressions, pedophilia, animal torture, and abuse. The onslaught can be numbing, but the translation's soaring lyricism offers mercy for the reader."[2]

References[]

  1. ^ a b "Debut Dutch Novel Wins International Booker Prize". Publishers Weekly. 26 August 2020. Retrieved 20 October 2021.
  2. ^ a b "Fiction Book Review: The Discomfort of Evening by Marieke Lucas Rijneveld, trans. from the Dutch by Michele Hutchison. Graywolf, $16 trade paper (296p) ISBN 978-1-64445-034-5". Publishers Weekly. 29 May 2021. Retrieved 20 October 2021.
  3. ^ Visser, Arjan (27 January 2018). "'Fantasie is altijd mijn grootste overlevingsstrategie geweest'". Trouw (in Dutch). Retrieved 20 October 2021.
  4. ^ "The Discomfort of Evening". Faber & Faber. Archived from the original on 6 March 2021. Retrieved 20 October 2021.
  5. ^ "The Discomfort of Evening". Graywolf Press. Retrieved 20 October 2021.
  6. ^ "Book Marks reviews of The Discomfort of Evening by Marieke Lucas Rijneveld, trans. by Michele Hutchison". Book Marks. Retrieved 20 October 2021.
  7. ^ "The Discomfort of Evening by Marieke Lucas Rijneveld ; translated by Michele Hutchison". Kirkus Reviews. 3 June 2020. Retrieved 20 October 2021.
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