The ascent
Hertmans, Stefan2023
Book
In the summer of 1979, Stefan Hertmans fell in love with a dilapidated house in Ghent. He rescued it from decay and it became his peaceful sanctuary. Decades on, he learns that a bust of Hitler once sat on the mantelpiece, and a war criminal and his family relaxed in its rooms. This shocking discovery sends Hertmans to the archives, where he uncovers the secrets of the house and the atrocities committed by its former owner Willem Verhulst. Drawing on the historical record and interviews with Verhulst's family, Hertmans reimagines the life of a weak, narcissistic man who climbed the ranks of the SS. Hertmans also uncovers the marital drama that took place in the house: Verhulst's commitment to the SS was at odds with the outlook of his wife, a deeply religious pacifist.
Main title:
The ascent / Stefan Hertmans ; translated from the Dutch by David McKay.
Author:
Hertmans, Stefan, authorMcKay, David, 1973-, translator
Work:
Imprint:
Melbourne, Victoria : Text Publishing, 2023.©2022.
Collation:
372 pages : illustrations ; 24 cm.
Notes:
Originally published as: De opgang. De Bezige Bij, 2020. This translation originally published: Harvill Secker, 2022.Translated from the Dutch .
ISBN:
9781922458858
Dewey class:
839.3137
Language:
EnglishDutch
Subject:
Hertmans, Stefan -- Homes and haunts -- FictionVerhulst, Willem -- FictionNazis -- Belgium -- Ghent -- FictionSecrecy -- FictionWorld War, 1914-1918 -- FictionWorld War, 1939-1945 -- Belgium -- Ghent -- FictionGhent (Belgium) -- History -- 20th century -- FictionBiographical fictionHistorical fictionWar fiction
BRN:
142833