Mariken Heitman won this week with her novel worm moon the Libris Literature Prize. Surprised?
‘Hell yes! The jury speaks of an ‘unruly reading experience’, which makes me curious and I suspect many of our customers too.’
Have you sold it well so far?
‘No, we sold 3 copies in 2021 and 3 in 2022. But now that she has won, the storm is brewing. We immediately ordered 50 copies. The effect of such a price should not be underestimated.
‘This is typically one of those books that has remained under the radar due to the corona circumstances because the bookstore could only be visited to a limited extent. All the better that it now gets the attention it deserves.’
Other news. Figures from Statistics Netherlands show that the number of bookstores in the high street fell by 8.1 percent last year. How do you view that?
‘A city center without a bookshop would be a reason for me to avoid the city center.
‘The decline is mainly due to the lack of succession. When we took over Godert Walter in 2014, people didn’t queue either. Running a bookshop is a multifaceted profession, rather a mission. There is uncertainty and you have to put a lot of time into it. On the other hand, there are special encounters and intellectual challenges. So that requires quite a bit.’
What is your tip of the week?
‘The song of stork and dromedary by Anjet Daanje. A book full suspense and psychological depth that provides insight into human relationships. Written in a beautiful style.
‘Daanje was unknown for a long time, but since The remembered soldier from 2019 that has changed. The book presentation took place on Thursday, co-organized by us. That’s the only public appearance she does. This time the hall was completely sold out. Totally different from last time when there were only a handful of people. The Libris Prize also ensured this in her case: she was on the long list. There you see the importance of such a price again.’
Top-10 best-selling books from Bookstore Godert Walter in Groningen:
1. David Graeber and David Wengrow: The beginning of everything; Maven Publishing
2. Sholeh Rezazadeh: The sky is always purple; Ambo Anthos
3. Hans Goedkoop, Gijs Tuinman : 1x – Double edition 4 and 5 May; CPNB4And5May2022
4. Roger Martin du Gard: Looking through a keyhole; The Workers’ Press
5. Auke Hulst: The Mitsukoshi Comfort Baby Company; Ambo Anthos
6. Frank Westerman: Too true to be beautiful; Querido Phosphorus
7. Lisa Weeda: Alexandra; The Busy Bee
8. Pieter Waterdrinker: Confess to my wife; Nijgh & van Ditmar
9. Tom Lanoye: The turntable; Prometheus
10. Edouard Louis: Change: method; The Busy Bee
De Volkskrant Boekenraad consists of Dominicans Maastricht, Godert Walter Groningen, The American Book Center Amsterdam, Adr. Heinen Den Bosch, De Vries Van Stockum Haarlem, Broese Utrecht, Waanders in de Broeren Zwolle, De Drvkkery Middelburg, Paagman Delft.