Nooteboom, Cees

Baton Rogue. 1988. Louisiana State University Press. 1st American Edition. Very Good in Dustjacket. 080711376x. Translated from the Dutch by Adrienne Dixon. 107 pages. hardcover. Jacket illustration by Jeroen Henneman. keywords: Literature Dutch Translated Netherlands. FROM THE PUBLISHER - PHILIP AND THE OTHERS, Nooteboom's first novel, was published in the Netherlands in 1953 and was reissued there in a special twenty-fifth anniversary edition in 1980. It is now made available for the first time in English in a splendid translation by Adrienne Dixon. Taking the form of a surreal picaresque tale, PHILIP AND THE OTHERS is a profound and experimental work. It begins when Philip first visits his aging, eccentric uncle, who resides alone in an ugly, rambling house. His uncle lives in the past and spends much of his time listening to music. When Philip finally leaves his uncle's home, he begins a dreamlike trip through Europe. For Philip, it is a journey of self-discovery. At one point Philip hears of, glimpses, and then begins to pursue a mysterious, elusive Oriental girl, and in his search for her he meets a gallery of strange, fantastic people who tell him their own stories. When Philip finally finds the girl, she abandons him and he returns to his uncle. Philip's search for the Oriental girl is a grand quest to attain perfection, to transcend the limitations of his existence. In the fairy-tale quality of its plot and the beauty of its poetic prose, PHILIP AND THE OTHERS displays many of the same qualities that have distinguished other Nooteboom novels such as RITUALS and IN THE DUTCH MOUNTAINS. inventory #11044 ISBN: 080711376x.