{"id":4330,"date":"2016-06-01T15:42:29","date_gmt":"2016-06-01T15:42:29","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/dutch\/?p=4330"},"modified":"2016-06-01T15:42:29","modified_gmt":"2016-06-01T15:42:29","slug":"book-review-the-dinner","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/dutch\/book-review-the-dinner\/","title":{"rendered":"Book Review: The Dinner"},"content":{"rendered":"

My latest Dutch read has been\u00a0Het Diner<\/em> by Herman Koch. A week after having read it, I am still struggling with what I think of the characters…which for me means it was a great read!<\/p>\n

Herman Koch was born in Arnhem and grew up in Amsterdam. He was an actor for the famous series\u00a0Jiskefet<\/em> and wrote for the\u00a0Volkskrant<\/em>. Since 1985, he has been publishing novels on a regular basis.\u00a0Het Diner<\/em> was published in 2009 and won the\u00a0NS Publieksprijs<\/em>. It has become one of the most translated Dutch novels of all time, and has even been reviewed by the New York Times.<\/p>\n

Het Diner<\/em> takes place at a very\u00a0chic<\/em>\u00a0restaurant in Amsterdam. The two couples are having dinner to discuss what to do with the recent situation with their sons. There are many sub-stories within the overall story such as the difficulties between the two fathers (they are brothers), the pompousness of the restaurant, the mental problems of Paul (one of the fathers), as well as the dynamics as parents and partners. The film’s trailer gives a nice glimpse of what the novel is about.<\/p>\n