André Sollie (7 July 1947 – 13 January 2025) was a Belgian author and illustrator of children's literature.

Life and career

Sollie made his debut in

children's poetry Children's poetry is poetry children's literature, written for, appropriate for children, appropriate for, or enjoyed by children. Children's poetry is one of the oldest art forms, rooted in early oral tradition, folk poetry, and nursery rhymes ...

with ''Soms, dan heb ik flink de pest in'' in 1986. In 2000, Sollie and Ingrid Godon published the children's book ''Wachten op Matroos''. They both won the

Gouden Griffel The Gouden Griffel (Golden Stylus) is an award given to authors of children's or teenagers' literature in the Netherlands. History Since 1971, it is awarded each year during the Dutch Children's Books Week, by the Stichting Collectieve Prop ...

award a year later for this book. The English translation of the book '' Hello, Sailor'' was published in 2003. The book is about a

lighthouse keeper A lighthouse keeper or lightkeeper is a person responsible for tending and caring for a lighthouse, particularly the light and lens in the days when oil lamps and clockwork mechanisms were used. Lighthouse keepers were sometimes referred to as ...

called Matt and his friend, Sailor, whom he deeply misses. The book caused controversy in England as it was argued that its inclusion in school curricula effectively forced schools to include books with homosexual characters.M. Brettingham
"New storm brews over gay books"
''The

Times Educational Supplement ''TES'', formerly known as the ''Times Educational Supplement'', is a British weekly trade magazine aimed at education professionals. It was first published in 1910 as a pull-out supplement in ''The Times'' newspaper. Such was its popularity th ...

'', p. 6, 20 October 2006 In 2004, he published ''Dubbel Doortje'' which was the first book that he both wrote and illustrated himself. He won the Boekenpluim award for his illustrations in this book. His 2005 novel for adolescents ''Nooit gaat dit over'' was turned into the 2011 feature film '' North Sea Texas'' (''Noordzee, Texas'') by Bavo Defurne. Sollie won the Boekenpauw award twice for his illustrations: in 1998 for the book ''De brief die Rosie vond'' written by

Bart Moeyaert Bart Peter Boudewijn Moeyaert (born 9 June 1964) is a Belgian writer. Early life Moeyaert was born in 1964 in Bruges as the youngest of seven brothers. He is named after the character Bartje in the book series by Anne de Vries and after Bau ...

and in 2010 for the book ''De Zomerzot'' which he wrote himself. Sollie died on 13 January 2025, at the age of 77.

Awards

* 1982: Prijs van de Kinder- en Jeugdjury voor het boek in Vlaanderen, ''De bloeiende mimosaboom'' * 1986: Prijs van de Kinder- en Jeugdjury voor het boek in Vlaanderen, ''De witte vogel'' * 1991: Prijs van de Kinder- en Jeugdjury voor het boek in Vlaanderen, ''35 boeven in Moo'' * 1993: Prijs van de Kinder- en Jeugdjury voor het boek in Vlaanderen, ''Hotel Hoteldebotel'' * 1998: Boekenpauw, ''De brief die Rosie vond'' (written by

) * 1998: Boekenwelp, ''Het ijzelt in juni'' * 2001:

, ''Wachten op Matroos'' (with Ingrid Godon) * 2005: Boekenpluim, ''Dubbel Doortje'' * 2007: Prijs van de Vlaamse Gemeenschap voor Jeugdliteratuur, ''Een raadsel voor Roosje'' * 2010: Boekenpauw, ''De Zomerzot''

References

External links

André Sollie
(in Dutch), Digital Library for Dutch Literature
André Sollie
(in Dutch), jeugdliteratuur.org * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Sollie, Andre 1947 births 2025 deaths Belgian children's book illustrators Flemish writers 20th-century Belgian writers 21st-century Belgian writers Boekenpauw winners Gouden Griffel winners People from Mechelen