The Detour (De omweg) is the third adult novel by Dutch writer Gerbrand Bakker. It was published in October 2010 and later translated into English by David Colmer as The Detour (U.S. edition: "Ten White Geese"). It is a study in self-searching, self-assertion and the nature of pain, narrated by a middle-aged Dutchwoman who has fled her husband to live in the solitude of rural Wales.[1] She sometimes watches Escape to the Country.[2]

According to Bakker, The Detour came from a "hugely depressed" time in his life. "I write instinctively. Something wants to come out. Only now do I see that this book is terribly much about myself. I write from the back of my mind. I don't see what I'm doing."[2]

The Detour won the Independent Foreign Fiction Prize (2013),[3][4] and was one of eight finalists for the International Dublin Literary Award (2014).[5]

References

  1. ^ Burnside, John (15 March 2012). "The Detour by Gerbrand Bakker - Review". The Guardian. Retrieved 25 March 2012.
  2. ^ a b Tonkin, Boyd (24 May 2013). "Gerbrand Bakker interview: Escape to the strangest country with newly crowned winner of The Independent Foreign Fiction". The Independent. Retrieved 24 May 2013.
  3. ^ "Lust in translation". Book Trust. 11 April 2013. Retrieved 12 April 2013.
  4. ^ "Dutch tale of isolation and infidelity wins the Independent Foreign Fiction Prize 2013". Independent Foreign Fiction Prize. 20 May 2013. Retrieved 21 May 2013.
  5. ^ "Vasquez celebrates book prize win". Irish Independent. 12 June 2014. Retrieved 12 June 2014.


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