Jeroen Olyslaegers’ novel WIJ to the silver screen

Last March, we enjoyed the novel WIJ (WE) by Jeroen Olyslaegers (photo by Koen Broos). With this amazing novel, Jeroen Olyslaegers definitely made his comeback to literature. The novel was very well received. HUMO wrote: ‘With his style, themes and narrative force, Olyslaegers is a worthy bastard son of the great Hugo Claus. WIJ is a gift to both Dutch and Flemish literature.’

Menuet, Dirk Impens’ film production company, has taken an option on the film rights to WIJ. In the past, Dirk Impens has already produced important cinema versions of Flemish novels: Daens, Villa des Roses, Alles moet weg and De helaasheid der dingen.

The option on the film rights is a new success for WIJ and for Meulenhoff Manteau. Last year, the Slovenian translation rights to the novel were sold. Today, WIJ is still a nominee for the Gerard Walschap Literature Award 2010. And as of 14 February, Jeroen Olyslaegers will participate in Chagrin d’Amour, the annual event of the Flemish art centre Behoud de Begeerte.

Jeroen Olyslaegers goes English

Check out this radio book by Jeroen Olyslaegers: 'God is quick to punish', translated by Michael O'Loughlin.

Slovenian rights We (Jeroen Olyslaegers) sold

(Jeroen Olyslaegers, author of the novel We, as seen by photographer Koen Broos.)

Slovenian rights for Jeroen Olyslaegers breathtaking novel We have been sold to Modrijan Publishers. Modrijan has published a.o. Hugo Claus in Slovenian. With We, Jeroen Olyslaegers has written a masterpiece about friendship and treason. We is one of this year's most exciting novels published in Dutch. Humo called Olyslaegers 'a worthy bastard son of the great Hugo Claus': 'We is his gift to Dutch literature.'

We: a literary masterpiece about friendship and treason

(Jeroen Olyslaegers, author of the novel We, as seen by photographer Koen Broos.)

“Olyslaegers has elevated his fantastic novel to a universal level: it’s the story of nationalism, of the sadism in every we-feeling, the grim excrescences of group thinking in all its possible forms. And of the fascist little corporal hidden inside every single one of us. Olyslaegers is a worthy bastard son of the great Hugo Claus. And We is his gift to Dutch literature.”
Humo

With We, Jeroen Olyslaegers has written a masterpiece about friendship and treason.

Summer 1976. Although Europe is groaning under a tropical sun, everybody heads south. Georges, a displeased cartoonist who works for a quality newspaper, travels with his family and friends to a mountain near the Spanish Costa Brava. There, all goes wrong…

We: a saga about the demons we share, sex, family, alcohol, black money and here and there a questionable past. We: a cleverly written story about a defeat. We: all the thin-skinned, smooth-tongued and heartbreaking beauty a modern-day novel can offer.

Jeroen Olyslaegers (1967) writes prose and theatre texts and works as a scenarist. We is his third book.