De Fûke

by Rink van der Velde

De haedfiguer yn dizze koarte roman hat net iens in namme. Hy is ek mar sljochtwei ielfisker, in man dy't ûnopfallend syn wegen giet en ek net oars wol. Der hat in rite west, dat er forwachtings hie fan it lebben, mar de tiid hat him oars leard. Ut syn anarchistys forline yn Beets hat er wol in simpele prinsipe oer holden, dat elk ,,dy't se achter de broek sitte" by him to plak kin. Yn 'e oarloch '40-'45 wurdt er op dat prinsipe ferge. Syn fiskersklinte oan de Tsûkemar is in tafletchtsoard foar ûnderdûkers en oare forfolgden. Oant op in dei syn iennichste soan it slachtoffer wurdt fan in razzia en de fiskerman foar de kar komt to stean.

De Fûke forskynde foar it earst yn 1966 en is neffens de measte kritisi de bêste roman fan Rink van der Velde. In minderhyt yn de jury foar de Gysbert Japiksspriis woe it boek yn 1967 al bikroane en doe't de skriuwer de priis fan 1975 takend waerd, neamde de jury nochris mei klam De Fûke as ien fan de hicthepunten út it oeuvre fan Rink van der Velde.

95 pages, Paperback

First published April 1, 1995

About the author

Friese schrijver en journalist

Reviews

[AdiTurbo]

This is a brilliant novella, managing to be moving and powerful, atmospheric and lyrical, while keeping the writing minimalist and unsentimental. The protagonist is a fisherman who lives in a lonely corner of a river, where he helps the Dutch resistance hide Jews from the Nazis that occupy the Netherlands during WWII. It opens with him being taken into questioning by Dutch collaborators. He is worried about his only son, who hasn't come home at night and has probably been involved in some sort of resistance operation. But he is strong, completely self-contained and emotionally-continent. Although he is a simple, uneducated man who came from a difficult family and a difficult background, he is intelligent, a free-thinker, who has strong political opinions and is extremely brave. But as the mind games in the interrogation get more and more complex, he begins to understand that things are not as they seem (not to spoil things for you). This is a very accurate depiction of life under Fascism and dictatorship. The terror, the moral dilemmas, the inner conflicts are all here, wonderfully-written. I enjoyed reading this very much, and hope to read more of this author.

[Niels S.]

Hard boek. Meest literaire Friese boek dat ik heb gelezen. Laatst trouwens ook "de lange jacht" van Rink van der Velde gelezen maar die staat niet eens op Goodreads 😡😭🤯. Dat was iig ook een goed boek. Persoonlijker dan de Fûke denk ik. En het Fries was voortreffelijk. Maar de Fûke is zeker weten de moeite waard .

[Etienne Stekelenburg]

Ik heb de Nederlandse versie gelezen niet dr Friese vertaling. Misschien zet ik deze versie er nog mij. Een fijn dun boekje met een oorlogsverhaal, één van die duizenden oorlogsverhalen opdat we nooit vergeten.

[Tamara Feddema]

Ik fûn dit in prachtich skreaun boek, hiel oars as syn 'Durk Snoad' boek wêr't ik neat oan fûn. Oanrieder.

[Hielke]

Prachtich. Hiel ferfine en yntelligent skreaun.

[Mar]

This book is set during World War Two, in a small province of the Netherlands: Friesland. It was translated into English by Henry Baron. The protagonist is picked up by the Dutch police and German soldiers on suspicion of involvement with the underground resistance. There is limited evidence and they basically want to see what information on others they can get out of him by any and all means including threats to his family. As he faces various interrogation sessions, the protagonist slowly reveals parts of his family background and how his prew-war activities have contributed to his current situation. The story itself has potential, but it is quite short and knowledge of the war and the Dutch resistance is assumed, which may make it difficult for readers in 2021 to follow or appreciate.

[Gary]

A surprisingly moving novella about Frisians and the Nazis...I really enjoyed it.