January 1597 on Nova Zembla, a crew member of the Dutch arctic expedition under Willem Barentsz, whose identity has yet to be established, died. Now 425 years later, as the permafrost begins to melt, he awakens from the icy grave, where he was once buried by Barentsz and his men. He had accompanied the expedition as a poet, tasked with writing a song of praise for their voyage through the North-East Passage, to the emperor of China and the spice markets of the East. Now that the ice is melting, he can bear his testimony.
A message from the permafrost, coming from someone with first hand experience.
Winner of the F. Bordewijk-prijs 2022
“This book does not meander placidly within the conventional shores of the novel. It washes generously over it and explores other terrain. It stirs the imagination and the desire for riddles, secrets and unknown horizons.” – De Tijd
“For a long time, this novel lay hidden under the literary permafrost of our editorial office, until something caused a crack in the ice and the realisation dawned upon us that we had forgotten what should not have been forgotten: one of the literary highlights of the year.” – de Volkskrant