She felt I was good at putting myself in another’s shoes but not so great at kicking off my own and having fun. Sometimes I’d get stuck in the other person for too long because that was easier than staying inside myself.

First of all, I want to say I did not enjoy this book at all. Actually, if it weren’t for the blog, I would have probably quit after three chapters. This was a bit of a disappointment since the book was nominated for one of my favorite prizes and I expected so much from it. It turned out to be one of the most repulsive books I’ve ever read. The book is well-written and, I guess, it achieves being a super uncomfortable book, so if you’re in the mood give it a try.

The book follows Jas a 10-year-old girl, whose brother, Matthies, dies in a skating accident. She feels guilty for her brother’s dead since she wished for it to happen (in a super innocent way). Jas lives on a farm in the Netherlands with her ultra-religious (Reformist) and strict family. The first chapters deal with the grief immediate to the death of Matthies. A story that starts kind of normal soon turns grim, depressing and revolting. As time goes by, the family (and their mental health) starts to disintegrate. The parents deal with everything through religion, which leaves the kids without many guidance to overcome the terrible episode of their brother dying.

The book is filled with pointless scenes of sexual exploration and abuse, animal cruelty and violence. Even the not super brutal scenes are disgusting, as most of them deal with extremely graphic defecation and other repugnant things. I cannot imagine a group of pre-teens (Jas and her two siblings) thinking like that, not even one that has gone through the trauma of losing a brother or with such a strict background. I felt most scenes’ only purpose was shocking the readers, to the point where it got repetitive and tedious.

About Marieke Lucas Rijneveld

Like their main character, Marieke Lucas Rijneveld grew up in a Reformed family in the rural Netherlands. The Discomfort of Evening is their first novel and is inspired partly by the death of their brother when they were three. The book was shortlisted for the Booker International and other relevant prizes.  They use the pronouns they/them.

Other books written by Dutch women:

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Dutch initiatives and projects that support and empower girls and women 

Atria

Atria, Institute on Gender Equality and Women’s History is a public library and research institute in Amsterdam founded in 1988, dedicated to research and policy advice on gender equality and to the documentation and archival of women’s history. Atria houses more than 100,000 books, 30,000 photographs and posters, and 6,000 periodicals of women’s and feminist international publications. Among their programs and initiatives is “Extraordinary Women”,  which aims to increase the visibility of women in history overviews, science, politics, sports, art and culture, for example, Women Pioneers.