“I’m looking for The Bitter Herb by Marga Minco. I didn’t know she was born here in Ginneken!” For example, a man enters the Van Kemenade & Hollaers bookstore on Saturday. “Here it is! Now I only have two left,” owner René Hollaers laughs. His heroine, writer Marga Minco, is no more. And even though she was no less than 103: “That’s a bit of a shock.”
The Breda writer, who grew up less than a kilometer from the store, is honored with a burning candle in the shop window. “She is a hero to me. A gifted writer who could succinctly express the suffering of the persecution of the Jews”. says Rene. “I first read Het Bittere Kruid in 1974. It grabbed me right away, because it is written so soberly and therefore all the more penetrating.”
“I was immediately captivated by this book because it is so soberly written.”
“It was a bit of a shock,” the bookseller sighs. “Marga turned 103 on March 31. It’s a shame.” During our conversation, Rene is interrupted by a customer. “I’m looking for The Bitter Herb by Marga Minco? I didn’t know she was born here in Ginneken!” Laughing, Rene shows the book he already had in his hands. “Here’s it. After this I only have two left. They’re going really fast today!”
“This booklet is already the 62nd edition,” says Rene proudly. Besides the special story, there is another reason. “The Bitter Herb is on the reading list at secondary school. Because it is such a nice thin book, it is very popular. I am happy about that, because it means that many young people are going to read about the events in the wartime.”
“Because it is such a thin book, many young people read about the events in the wartime.”
Oranjeplein, near the viaduct halfway along Ginnekenweg, will soon be renovated and renamed Marga Mincoplein. A wish of the residents of the Bredase district for years. Marga Minco was born a few hundred meters away, at 194 Prins Hendrikstraat.
The road will be narrowed on the square and there will be more greenery. A work of art will also be placed in honor of the writer. Despite her advanced age, the writer was already recording texts for the artwork. “I would have loved it if she still made it,” concludes René. “It’s a shame she can’t experience this anymore.”