Pallieter by Felix Timmermanns

[Diane]

Rating: 3 stars


Yes, this does come in a translated-to-English version. When I bought the book I took a chance on a listing without a discription, knowing it might end up being in Dutch, since both versions share the same name. Fortunately, the book was in English.

Pallieter is a novel about Flemish rural life. The main character (Pallieter) marries, starts a family, and frequently admires nature and the world around him. Not much happens here in terms of plot, but it provides a view into what life was like in this part of the world 100 years ago. The book is a lot more cheerful and optimistic compared to most 1001 books. Apparently this immensely added to its popularity during the time, since it was written and released during WWI.

[Amanda]

I have had trouble finding the English translation, so I read an auto-translated Dutch text file version. Even though it wasn't perfect, I could still appreciated the sumptuous descriptions of the village and wandering woods, the party feasts spent drinking, singing, and generally making merry. Is it a bit overly saccharine and lacking nuance in its pedestalizing of the pastoral life? sure. But, hey, I was susceptible to it and really enjoyed it. I thought it carved out an important niche on the list as a book of joy, when so many are books of tragedy.

This is also the place it carved out in its place in history: providing a connection to simple close to the earth joy for so many people jaded and afraid of the machinery, political complexity, and carnage of WWI.

I gave it 4 stars.