A classic in Dutch literature. Holocaust related.

Bitter Herbs

Bitter Herbs (Het Bittere Kruid), which dates from 1957, was Minco’s debut novel. The title refers to a ritual which is part of the Jewish Seder, when unleavened bread and bitter herbs are eaten, partly to commemorate the exodus from Egypt, and partly to symbolize the hospitality offered to strangers. She calls her ninety-page novel ‘a little chronicle’, and in it she evokes her memories from the war years: the evening the whole family gathered to sew Jewish stars onto their coats, the day the call-up came for the ‘work camp’, a forbidden train trip, and the razzias which emptied whole streets.

As in the work of Primo Levi and Imre Kertesz, it is not only simple facts that make Minco’s work so impressive, but the manner in which those facts are presented. Bitter Herbs is written in a limpid, immediate, almost casual style. The scenes in the book are deceptively ordinary, except that their context is vicious. Minco is never explicit; she says more by saying less. Her reminiscences leave a lasting impression upon the reader, because of the open sincerity of the writing and her refusal to resort to any form of literary dramatisation to tell a story that is in itself poignant and dramatic.

Marga Minco

Biography
Marga Minco (b. 1920) grew up in a Jewish family of five children in Breda. Unlike her sisters, brothers and parents, she escaped being arrested and went into hiding during
World War II. In 1957 she made her literary debut with the short novel Het bittere kruid (Bitter Herbs), the laconic and devastating story of a young girl who gets away when her parents are arrested, and finally discovers that she has lost everyone who was close to her. The book was a great success both in the Netherlands (more than 400,000 copies sold) and abroad. New work followed at irregular intervals: De andere kant (The Other Side, 1959), Een leeg huis (An Empty House, 1966), De val (The Fall, 1983) and De glazen brug (The Glass Bridge, 1986). Minco lives and works in Amsterdam.

(Source: "The foundation for the production and the translation of Dutch Literature" http://www.nlpvf.nl/)

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Found on eBay. I bought it to send as a RABCK, but could make it a ray if there are enough people interested and let it end at the address I had in mind. The first time I read it myself, was in school ages ago. I did not remember much about it. So I re-read this copy in English and can say that I think, especially given the fact it's so short, the author succeeded in giving a good insite in what life was like for jews in the Netherlands(map) during those dark days of WW II.

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And a ray it will be!

Please:

• make a journal entry when the book arrives
• try to read it within one month, but sooner if possible*
• PM the next on the list to ask for his/her address
• make a journal entry when finished
• wrap it up well and send it to the next on the list
• PM me in case of any problems/unforeseen delay

*) It's a quick read, only 115 pages, incl. many illustrations.

Shippinglist
You can see the journey of this book on a map!

Bookworm-lady Spain => Europe
AnglersRest UK=>UK
kinedi UK => pref. Europe (INT if needed*)
aunt-sophie CAN=> anywhere
azuki USA=>USA
Guinneth USA=>anywhere
SqueakyChu USA
(end of ray=>special RABCK. Enjoy! )

*Thanks kinedi for taking it across the ocean!

RELEASE NOTES:

sent to Bookworm-lady (ray)

I received it last Friday, as I am the first member of a Bookray by bestfriends.
Thanks a lot, I am sure I will enjoy reading it!

I really liked it; it is easy to read, beautifully written and/or translated.
The style is casual and easy, which makes it more poignant, given the story's background.
Thanks for letting me share Marga's story.
It will be on its way to AnglersRest, in lovely Devon, this afternoon.

I sent it to AnglersRest, in Devon, yesterday.
Enjoy!

Thanks, arrived this morning. This now my 3rd ring, but should get this moving within the week or so.

A gentle book dealing with the complex and palnful issues of occupied Holland.
I have kinedi's address so this will be in the post tomorrow. Thanks for sharing.

Arrived with the post this weekend. Thanks very much. Will try to read it next and then take on my holidays with me to Canada so I can post it from there.

A very moving tale about a young Jewish girl in Nazi occupied Holland.The simplicity of the language sometimes brought tears to my eyes.For example when the Father goes out to get the Stars they have to pin onto their clothes from now on
''Could you have as many as that ?'' asks the mother, ''Oh yes, as many as I liked''
Thanks for organising this bookring, best friends. I already have aunt-sophie's address and as I will leave to Canada on Sept 30th I will post the book to her from Nova Scotia, week beginning Oct 2. Hope that's okay.

RELEASE NOTES:

Posted out from Halifax, NS !

Received today! I've just started another bookring, so it will have to wait a bit.

Well, as I expected, it was a short read, but a really good one. I liked how she used a light, casual tone to write about such a heavy topic. Beautiful! Thank you for letting us discover this book through this ray, bestfriends!

I am now waiting for the next person's address to mail it.

I received this book on Sat, thank you so much aunt-sophie for sending it. Thanks bestfriends for sharing the book and including the postcard. The episode about the stars stood out to me as well, the way the women talked about what colors of threads to use... Our awareness of what is going to come makes the whole book a lot more intense.

Just confirmed Guinneth's address and this book will be traveling again tomorrow.

The book arrived safely today. Thanks for sending it, azuki - and thank you SO much for the sweet frame!! What an unexpected and lovely surprise. :)

I've literally just finished another book, so will start in on this right away.

The very thing I found a bit incomprehensible at first turned out to be an effective device by the end of the book. Initially I had a hard time getting into the story because I didn't know what was happening in the war - I felt like I needed the big picture in order to be oriented. By the end of the book I realized that this actually reflected the nature of what was happening to these families all over Holland (and surely elsewhere as well.) The sense of disorientation and "this can't be happening" disbelief was pretty palpable and made Marga's story hit you on an emotional, rather than an intellectual level.

Thank you for sharing this, bestfriends.

So sorry - thought I'd sent this on already!! Mailed to SqueakyChu today.

Del. conf.# 0306 2400 0002 0783 9954

It's here, bestfriends! Thanks so much for the book and the postcard. I'm reading a 700+ page book now, but I hope to get to your book soon. This is just the kind of book I like...one that I wouldn't ordinarily come across in my own used book store. I'm sure I'll enjoy reading it. Talk to you later...

I don't know why I keep reading about the Holocaust. It so upsets me. My mother lost her parents in Auschwitz. I read, I guess, because I feel compelled to remember and relive over and over what happened to my people. My family was from Yugoslavia and from Germany, not from the Netherlands. Not that it made a difference. Their fates were the same.

The book is understated, moving, deeply sad. Thank you, bestfriends, for sharing it with me.

I really liked seeing the houses of Utrecht on the postcard. It made the story come a bit more alive for me.

I only have one friend who is Dutch. Ironically enough, she is a convert to Judaism.

I'll be thinking about this little story for a long time...

P.S. I'm keeping the postcard.

The book is now in the mail as a RABCK heading to gaysocialworker in Texas.

Arrived safely today. Thanks!

While Minco’s Bitter Herbs departs from the usual graphic depictions of the Jewish holocaust, it nonetheless describes one girl’s experience under the Nazi regime. It doesn’t appear by the narrative that the author personally witnessed the massacre of her people, as she was able to elude capture. She does, however, experience profound loss—loss of her family, loss of her rights, loss of her community, and arguably, loss of her faith:

”I stood looking at the people who got out, as if I was waiting for someone. Someone with a familiar face, that would suddenly appear right in front of mine. But I lacked my uncle’s faith. They would never come back—not my father, not my mother, nor Betty, nor Dave or Lottie” (p. 115).

I wonder if some of the author’s narrative was lost in translation, as the text was originally written in Dutch. And while I caution saying the book is an “enjoyable” read—can a person really enjoy the stories from such a terrible time—it was nonetheless a worthy read.

I’ve shelved this book for some time. I’m going to try to get it back on its way through a RABCK or trade in the forums.

Sending on to Caridad as RABCK. Enjoy!

Just got it in the mail. Thanks for sharing, GSW!