Spain

In 2009, De Bezige Bij published the anniversary edition of De omweg naar Santiago (Roads to Santiago), the result of the many journeys that Nooteboom and his wife Simone Sassen have taken over the course of the years through what he has called his ‘second fatherland’. With Sassen, he also created the monumental Tumbas, penetrating portraits accompanying photographs of the graves of poets and writers. Since the1960s, Cees Nooteboom has spent the summer and early autumn on the Balearic island of Menorca, where he has created novels, such as Allerzielen, and collections of poetry such as Zo kon het zijn. Reflections on his Menorcan house and garden and the residents of the island appeared in the collection Rode regen. In spring 2009, De Bezige Bij published the impressive short-story collection ’s Nachts komen de vossen, for which the island often forms the backdrop.