I was always a fan of Annie MG Schmidt, but when reading through this biography. which is largely a summery of all her work, you can’t help but be in awe. Plays, children’s books, literature, musicals, poems and even an opera. She kept writing up until the end, even though she was mostly blind. It’s also interestign to see how she took things from her own life and thred them through her work. Her infatuation with a young gay man, which resulted int he gorgeous song ‘Iedereen was zo’ (everybody was like that). And even a play on a suicidal man (largely based on her husband at the end of his life).

The biography left me resolute to go digging through bookstores in search of more of her work for my bookcase. This of course is mostly due to Annie MG Schmidt and not so much to the biography. But the biography itself is also well written. It’s really just a summery of her life and work, but it is done in a way which makes it an easy read. Well done.