Winter Ice
by Peter van Gestel
Description
1947: Post-war Amsterdam. During a long, hot summer, 10-year-old Thomas wanders through the city all by himself. He looks back on the coldest and longest winter ever. His mother has died; his father is an artist who can barely make a living. Then Thomas befriends a Jewish boy called Zwaan and Zwaan’s cousin. Thomas gradually discovers the scars the war has left on their lives, which considerably changes his own life. The expressive detail and the constant changes in time and place create a three-dimensional map of post-war Amsterdam, including the smells and colours of a crowded classroom, the solid cold snow on the canals, the slippery ice of the river Amstel and the double bed in which Thomas and Zwaan sleep. The underlying emotions are timeless: children like Thomas are still bullied because they are different. Children and adults alike still suffer in silence, unable to share their emotions. This tale of a child who is physically and emotionally neglected deserves a place amongst the great classics.
More Information
Marketing Information
Over 50,000 copies of Winter Ice sold
Winter Ice is a three-time award winner:
- 2002 Golden Slate Pencil: most prestigious children’s book prize in the Netherlands
- Winner of the 2002 Woutertje Pieterse Award: Dutch literary critics award
- Winner of the 2003 Nienke van Hichtum Award: for 13+ literature
Reviews
‘A masterpiece’ NRC
- Handelsblad (Dutch newspaper)
‘A beautiful story about two friends growing up’
- De Limburger (Dutch newspaper)
‘A beautiful story about friendship and love’
- de Volkskrant (Dutch newspaper)
Author Biography
Peter van Gestel (Amsterdam, 1937) is one of the Netherlands’ most award-winning children’s authors.
After graduating drama school, he worked as an actor and playwright for Dutch radio and television. He made his debut in 1961 with a short story and went on to write numerous children’s books. Winter Ice is
his most acclaimed book.
Shared Stories (part of VBK Uitgevers B.V.)
Shared Stories is the in-house rights agency non-fiction and children's and YA titles of the Dutch VBK Publishing Group, representing the publishing houses AnkhHermes, De Fontein, Houtekiet, Kok|Omniboek, Kosmos, Luitingh-Sijthoff, Mozaïek and Ten Have.
View all titlesBibliographic Information
- Publisher De Fontein
- ReadershipTeenage/Young Adult
- Publish StatusPublished
- Original Language TitleWinterijs
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