Great diversity

Back to the quilt. Particularly noticeable in the latest children’s books on offer is the great diversity in genres. Poetry for children and teenagers is being busily written and appreciated. Auto biographies and novellas have finally made their entrance. Novels for adolescents hunt for new readers. Historical novels and traditional adventure stories remain well represented. The realistic “problem book” is back with new stories. Picture books come in all sizes and colours. A clear sign of this trend was the awarding of the 1995 Golden Pencil (one of the most important awards for children’s literature) to Dutch poet Ted van Lieshout for his outstanding collection Begin een torentje van niets (Begin a Silly Little Tower). With his poetry Van Lieshout aims to bridge the gap between children’s literature and books for adults. This is clear from the mature style and provocative choice of topics. Poets such as Daniel Billiet, Gil van der Heyden, Ed Franck, Fetze Pijlman, Leendert Witvliet, Wiel Kusters, Johanna Kruit, Hans Hagen and André Sollie are also contributing to this cause. The rebellious tone and the strict metres of Dutch poets of the 1970s have made way for the new generation’s hushed emotions, expressed in free, sometimes hermetic verse. Younger poetry lovers are being spoiled with playful and recognisable verses and rhymes by Ienne Biemans, Nannie Kuiper, Theo Olthuis, Riet Wille and Geert de Kockere. It’s fortunate for the young listeners and readers of Flanders and the Netherlands that they are being spoiled: budding literacy is being stimulated. Illustrators from the Low Countries are continuing great pictorial traditions: Lieve Baeten, Max Velthuys and many others are internationally renowned illustrated book makers.