Death of Hella S. Haasse
On 29 September author Hella S. Haasse died. She was ninety-three. Haasse was one of the greatest of Dutch post-war writers. Her name has often been included as one of the ‘great four’ alongside Harry Mulisch, Gerard Reve and W.F. Hermans.
Her work was awarded the most important of Dutch literary prizes, including the Constantijn Huygens Prize, the P.C. Hooft Prize and the Dutch Literature Prize.
Abroad too her work is held in high regard, especially in France and Italy. In 2003 she was awarded the Prix du Meilleur Livre étranger for La récalcitrante (Seuil, 2003), the French translation of Mevrouw Bentinck, Onverenigbaarheid van karakter, translated by Anne-Marie de Both-Diez.
For the Dutch Foundation for Literature Haasse was active both as a manager and as a participant in events organized by the Foundation in other countries. The Dutch Foundation for Literature commemorates Hella S. Haasse as a great writer, of huge significance to Dutch literature. She remains in our memories as an extraordinary woman with a powerful analytical mind. The Dutch Foundation for Literature will do its utmost to keep her work alive both in Dutch and in translation.
Haasse in translation:
Published: October 3, 2011 news
photo: Roy Tee / NLPVF