Finally, my name came to the top of the local library’s reservation list, and I was able to read this Booker book. I really enjoyed “The Safekeep” by Yael van der Wouden and found it a very emotionally satisfying read. First of all, I admired how efficiently the author began her story and set the plot in motion. It is spring in the Netherlands in the year 1961. In the very first sentence, the protagonist, Isabel, a thirty-or-so-year-old young Dutch woman, uncovers a piece of a broken dinner plate while digging in her garden. This bit of crockery will appear periodically throughout the novel as a symbol of the characters’ experiences as children during World War Two, memories of which will reemerge to affect their adult lives. Within a matter of a few pages, we have met Isabel and her two brothers, Louis and Hendrick, as well as Louis’s girlfriend, Eva, as they gather for dinner at a restaurant. Isabel takes an instant dislike to Eva, thus setting up the main point of contention in the story. Although Isabel is presented to us as a very unlikeable character-rude, abrupt, suspicious, with a face like vinegar, according to Eva-I found it difficult not to feel sympathy for someone so socially isolated: “Friendship had always seemed a distrustful thing to Isabel.” It seemed apparent to me that Isabel’s hostile attitude to the world was the result of some past trauma. Isabel feels very awkward and uncomfortable in the opening restaurant scene with her brothers and Eva. We later learn that she has only made two trips to the cinema in her entire life. Any social occasion involving noise, other people, and unfamiliar surroundings makes Isabel long for the sanctuary and solitude of her family home, which she maintains with the care and attentiveness of a museum curator. We are told that Isabel feels “nauseous” when her aspiring boyfriend, Johan, touches her, yet I had the sense that Isabel actually yearns desperately to be touched, by the right person. Eva seems to intuit this as well, and briefly puts her hand to Isabel’s waist when saying goodbye to her at the end of the evening out with Louis and Hendrik. Isabel doesn’t recoil from Eva’s touch, seeming to confirm that Eva has deciphered something of Isabel’s nature and character, just as Isabel later tries to explain to Hendrik that there’s something not quite right about Eva. When Louis is suddenly called out of the country on a business trip, Isabel grudgingly agrees to allow Eva to stay with her for the month or so that he’ll be away. I’ve seen a TH-cam video of Yael van der Wouden explaining that Daphne du Maurier’s “Rebecca” was a major inspiration for her own novel, and this is reflected in the way that Isabel and Eva are portrayed while living under the same roof. The pair are like scorpions in a bottle. Isabel monitors Eva’s movements about the home and suspects her of stealing from her, while Eva vehemently protests that she’s not responsible for the items that keep disappearing from around the house. Despite the tensions between the two women, Eva makes occasional friendly overtures to Isabel in what seems to be a genuine attempt to understand her better. Then comes what I think of as the seduction in the Garden of Eden scene. One day Eva-or Eve-brings home two ripe, juicy pears-one for her, one for Isabel. Eva eats her pear at the kitchen table, while Isabel keenly observes the juice running down her hands. Subliminally aroused, Isabel feels too self-conscious to have Eva witness her own enjoyment of the simple, sensual pleasure of eating a ripe piece of fruit, so she retreats to the privacy of her room. There she devours the pear-stem, core, and all-with the same voraciousness she will later display in consuming Eva during their bouts of lovemaking. For the moment soon comes when neither Isabel nor Eva can conceal the physical and emotional desires they have awakened in each other. For Isabel, in particular, the long-repressed wellsprings of sexual longing and fulfillment come bursting to the surface. Eva has presented her with a gift in the form of a dimension to her existence she never thought would be hers. But the women’s private idyll threatens to come to an end when Louis writes to say he’ll be returning soon from his foreign business trip. Then Isabel discovers that Eva actually has been stealing from her, and throws her out of her home. The shadow of World War Two and the Nazi concentration camps, less than twenty years in the past, now come to the fore as Isabel uncovers the origin story of the house she has always thought of as her family’s own. As we learn, both Isabel and Eva have reason to feel betrayed by the other, but ultimately, “The Safekeep” is a story of redemption, and I appreciated how well Yael van der Wouden played out this theme in her novel’s closing scenes. I wouldn’t be at all surprised to see this book being adapted for the big screen, as both Isabel and Eva are the type of strong, complex characters actors love to portray.
Horny pears indeed! I loved this book, especially the way the characters were developed. I went trom not caring about any of the main characters to being fully invested.
As I see it, on p. 256 Isabel makes Eva a gift of her/their house. "It's mine. And it's yours. If you want it." While on the last page of the novel, Eva makes a gift to Isabel of herself. We also have Isabel thinking of her love for Eva: "She would never leave a room again and not leave half of her behind." In other words, half of Isabel belongs to Eva--and vice versa--just as the house belongs to both of them.
Glad you liked this! I finished it last week, and wasn’t as impressed. Part 1 intrigued me, but Part 2 bored me to tears, it almost seemed like an enemies to lovers trope romance, and I’m not a prude but at times it bordered on erotica. There was just too much. The writing and twist were good, but romance just isn’t my thing. (I guess I have a cold, cold heart. 😂)
I thought the love scenes were fairly restrained, considering that Isabel has been starved of physical love for most of her adult life. And I liked the idea of these two damaged and forlorn people finding love and a place to call their own. I can see this novel being made into a film, with obvious references to the Palestinians hope for a homeland of their own.
@@TomBrzezicki Yes, I see that. Don’t get me wrong, I did like seeing the push and pull of their affair and Isabel coming to terms with her sexuality, just thought the sex scenes became repetitive. After the first few I found myself skimming over them. Agree It would make for a fantastic, heartbreaking movie!
@@Elizabeth-Reads This reminds me of that scene in “Annie Hall” where Woody Allen and Diane Keaton are talking separately with their therapists. Woody’s therapist asks him, “How often do you sleep together?” and Woody answers, “Hardly ever, maybe three times a week.” Diane’s therapist asks her, “Do you have sex often?” and Diane replies, “Constantly, I’d say three times a week.”
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Finally, my name came to the top of the local library’s reservation list, and I was able to read this Booker book. I really enjoyed “The Safekeep” by Yael van der Wouden and found it a very emotionally satisfying read. First of all, I admired how efficiently the author began her story and set the plot in motion. It is spring in the Netherlands in the year 1961. In the very first sentence, the protagonist, Isabel, a thirty-or-so-year-old young Dutch woman, uncovers a piece of a broken dinner plate while digging in her garden. This bit of crockery will appear periodically throughout the novel as a symbol of the characters’ experiences as children during World War Two, memories of which will reemerge to affect their adult lives.
Within a matter of a few pages, we have met Isabel and her two brothers, Louis and Hendrick, as well as Louis’s girlfriend, Eva, as they gather for dinner at a restaurant. Isabel takes an instant dislike to Eva, thus setting up the main point of contention in the story.
Although Isabel is presented to us as a very unlikeable character-rude, abrupt, suspicious, with a face like vinegar, according to Eva-I found it difficult not to feel sympathy for someone so socially isolated: “Friendship had always seemed a distrustful thing to Isabel.” It seemed apparent to me that Isabel’s hostile attitude to the world was the result of some past trauma. Isabel feels very awkward and uncomfortable in the opening restaurant scene with her brothers and Eva. We later learn that she has only made two trips to the cinema in her entire life. Any social occasion involving noise, other people, and unfamiliar surroundings makes Isabel long for the sanctuary and solitude of her family home, which she maintains with the care and attentiveness of a museum curator.
We are told that Isabel feels “nauseous” when her aspiring boyfriend, Johan, touches her, yet I had the sense that Isabel actually yearns desperately to be touched, by the right person. Eva seems to intuit this as well, and briefly puts her hand to Isabel’s waist when saying goodbye to her at the end of the evening out with Louis and Hendrik. Isabel doesn’t recoil from Eva’s touch, seeming to confirm that Eva has deciphered something of Isabel’s nature and character, just as Isabel later tries to explain to Hendrik that there’s something not quite right about Eva.
When Louis is suddenly called out of the country on a business trip, Isabel grudgingly agrees to allow Eva to stay with her for the month or so that he’ll be away. I’ve seen a TH-cam video of Yael van der Wouden explaining that Daphne du Maurier’s “Rebecca” was a major inspiration for her own novel, and this is reflected in the way that Isabel and Eva are portrayed while living under the same roof. The pair are like scorpions in a bottle. Isabel monitors Eva’s movements about the home and suspects her of stealing from her, while Eva vehemently protests that she’s not responsible for the items that keep disappearing from around the house. Despite the tensions between the two women, Eva makes occasional friendly overtures to Isabel in what seems to be a genuine attempt to understand her better.
Then comes what I think of as the seduction in the Garden of Eden scene. One day Eva-or Eve-brings home two ripe, juicy pears-one for her, one for Isabel. Eva eats her pear at the kitchen table, while Isabel keenly observes the juice running down her hands. Subliminally aroused, Isabel feels too self-conscious to have Eva witness her own enjoyment of the simple, sensual pleasure of eating a ripe piece of fruit, so she retreats to the privacy of her room. There she devours the pear-stem, core, and all-with the same voraciousness she will later display in consuming Eva during their bouts of lovemaking.
For the moment soon comes when neither Isabel nor Eva can conceal the physical and emotional desires they have awakened in each other. For Isabel, in particular, the long-repressed wellsprings of sexual longing and fulfillment come bursting to the surface. Eva has presented her with a gift in the form of a dimension to her existence she never thought would be hers.
But the women’s private idyll threatens to come to an end when Louis writes to say he’ll be returning soon from his foreign business trip. Then Isabel discovers that Eva actually has been stealing from her, and throws her out of her home. The shadow of World War Two and the Nazi concentration camps, less than twenty years in the past, now come to the fore as Isabel uncovers the origin story of the house she has always thought of as her family’s own.
As we learn, both Isabel and Eva have reason to feel betrayed by the other, but ultimately, “The Safekeep” is a story of redemption, and I appreciated how well Yael van der Wouden played out this theme in her novel’s closing scenes. I wouldn’t be at all surprised to see this book being adapted for the big screen, as both Isabel and Eva are the type of strong, complex characters actors love to portray.
Just finished this. Amazing. Mind blown by the twist. Thanks for your video!
Yay!!!!! I’m so glad you loved it!!!
Totally agree!!! finished it in one gulp (20 hours) Also if people liked "A little life" they will love this book!
I really hope this is shortlisted but since I love it, it probably wont be.
Thanks for the great review. I’ll add it to my TBR.
Horny pears indeed! I loved this book, especially the way the characters were developed. I went trom not caring about any of the main characters to being fully invested.
Same. I hated Isabel at first and I changed my tune.
I will definitely be checking this out
YAY!!!!
Sounds like a good book, we love a good plot twist!😘
It's so good! Please please please read it!
I've just finished the book now. But I couldn't understand the last page, the final. I feel like I've missed something
As I see it, on p. 256 Isabel makes Eva a gift of her/their house. "It's mine. And it's yours. If you want it." While on the last page of the novel, Eva makes a gift to Isabel of herself. We also have Isabel thinking of her love for Eva: "She would never leave a room again and not leave half of her behind." In other words, half of Isabel belongs to Eva--and vice versa--just as the house belongs to both of them.
Glad you liked this! I finished it last week, and wasn’t as impressed. Part 1 intrigued me, but Part 2 bored me to tears, it almost seemed like an enemies to lovers trope romance, and I’m not a prude but at times it bordered on erotica. There was just too much. The writing and twist were good, but romance just isn’t my thing. (I guess I have a cold, cold heart. 😂)
OH NO!!! I''m sorry this did work for you
I thought the love scenes were fairly restrained, considering that Isabel has been starved of physical love for most of her adult life. And I liked the idea of these two damaged and forlorn people finding love and a place to call their own. I can see this novel being made into a film, with obvious references to the Palestinians hope for a homeland of their own.
@@TomBrzezicki Yes, I see that. Don’t get me wrong, I did like seeing the push and pull of their affair and Isabel coming to terms with her sexuality, just thought the sex scenes became repetitive. After the first few I found myself skimming over them. Agree It would make for a fantastic, heartbreaking movie!
@@Elizabeth-Reads This reminds me of that scene in “Annie Hall” where Woody Allen and Diane Keaton are talking separately with their therapists. Woody’s therapist asks him, “How often do you sleep together?” and Woody answers, “Hardly ever, maybe three times a week.” Diane’s therapist asks her, “Do you have sex often?” and Diane replies, “Constantly, I’d say three times a week.”
@@TomBrzezicki 😂
I was a bit mixed on this book, but you’ve given me more of an appreciation for it (and its very horny pears).
I have a feeling you and I are going to have wildly different rankings for this year's Booker.
I think her name is pronounced like "vowden"
No, it is "ou" as in "loud". The "w" is just pronounced ad a "w," not as a "v."
@@LisaVD92 i actually meant the same. If you say the English verb vow you're almost there. Vow and loud have the same "au" sound. Love and peace
Thank you both for your help with this!
I appreciate all the help with pronunciation! I need all the help I can get!
@@NerdyNurseReads You're doing great. I love your channel!
h o r n i e s t p e a r s
I'll never look at a pear the same way again