Uit Mexico ben ik gevlucht, mevrouw, gevlucht!

by Max Dendermonde

Wat haalt de Nederlandse wetenschapper Louis Loman zich in zijn hoofd dat hij meent zich te kunnen meten met de ondoorgrondelijke Christobal, een machtige Mexicaanse hereboer. De archeoloog Hans Meertens probeert nauwkeurig te registreren wat er gebeurd is, maar raakt zelf verstrikt in een netwerk van intriges als gevolg van zijn liefde voor de koperblonde Vicky. En wat drijft hem er uiteindelijk toe Mexico en Vicky te verlaten? In deze prachtige kleine roman, die de auteur terecht als een van zijn beste verhalen beschouwt, raakt de lezer verzeild in een maalstroom van hartstocht en jalouzie, tegen de achtergrond van het woeste Mexicaanse landschap

143 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1983

About the author

Max Dendermonde was the pen name of Hendrik Hazelhoff.

Reviews

[Marloes Baren]

Dendermonde seems to be one of those Dutch writers who did receive some acclaim in the decades up to the nineties but who gradually fell out of grace with the next generations. He was extremely productive, publishing more than one novel yearly for a long period of time.
Unfortunately, 'Uit Mexico ben ik gevlucht, mevrouw, gevlucht!' reads as what you would expect to be the result of that. While the story line, characters and setting hold a lot of promise, the potential isn't quite realized.
I never felt mesmerized by a certain metaphor or description, the character depictions lack refinement and some elements felt as if they were underresearched. For example, having been involved in the Dutch Archaeological Society myself for a while, some things Dendermonde describes about the practice, strike me as unlikely, or at least incomplete.
Dendermonde frames the narration as Louis Loman's response to a letter. This letter having been written by his colleague's mother, who looks to the protagonist for information about her missing son. This approach does have a certain charm to it.
Overall I think this book is worth a read if you are looking for something light and happen to come across it in a second hand book store. Then again, it also offers some justification for the fact we don't hear a lot about the author or this novel three decades later.