Anna Enquist (born 19 July 1945) is the pen name of one of the more popular authors in the Netherlands, Christa Widlund-Broer. She is known for both her poetry and her novels.

Biography

Born in Amsterdam, Enquist studied piano at the music academy in The Hague and psychology at

Leiden University Leiden University (abbreviated as ''LEI''; nl, Universiteit Leiden) is a Public university, public research university in Leiden, Netherlands. The university was founded as a Protestant university in 1575 by William the Silent, William, Prince o ...

. Her first poems appeared in the journal ''Maatstaf'' in 1988, while her first collection ''Soldatenliederen'' (Soldiers' Songs) was published in 1991, while she was still working as a psychoanalyst. In 1992, she received the

C. Buddingh'-prijs The C. Buddingh'-prijs (Dutch for C. Buddingh' Prize) is an annual literary award for the best debut poetry collection in Dutch. The award is given by Poetry International Web, Poetry International and is named after Dutch poet C. Buddingh'. The ...

for her debut poetry collection. Thereafter she devoted most of her time to literature. On the poetry front, she published six more collections: ''Jachtscènes'' (Hunting Scenes; 1992), ''Een nieuw afscheid'' (A New Goodbye; 1994), ''De tweede helft'' (The Second Half; 2000), ''Hier was vuur'' (Here Was Fire; 2002), ''De tussentijd'' (The Interval; 2004) and ''Nieuws van nergens'' (News from Nowhere; 2010). They have all been published in one volume as ''Gedichten 1991-2012''. Enquist's first prose works, ''Het meesterstuk'' (The Masterpiece, 1995) and ''Het geheim'' (The Secret, 1997), are psychological novels in which classical music plays an important part. In 2002, she reached a wide readership with ''De ijsdragers'' (The Ice Carriers) which was distributed as a free gift during the Dutch Book Week in 2002. Her acclaimed historical novel ''De thuiskomst'' (The Homecoming, 2005) is centred on Elizabeth Batts, the wife of the British explorer

James Cook James Cook (7 November 1728 Old Style date: 27 October – 14 February 1779) was a British explorer, navigator, cartographer, and captain in the British Royal Navy, famous for his three voyages between 1768 and 1779 in the Pacific Ocean an ...

. In 2008, she published ''Contrapunt'' (''Counterpoint'') about a pianist studying Bach's Goldberg Variations and remembering her deceased daughter. This moving novel is based on the author's tragic experience of losing her own 27-year-old daughter Margit in a biking accident in Amsterdam in 2001. Psychological and relationship issues, the loss of a child or children, painful memories, the challenges of ageing as well as her love of classical music are themes not only of ''Counterpoint'', but also of her 2014 novel ''Kwartet'' (''Quartet'').

Awards

In 2005, Enquist received the Taalunie Toneelschrijfprijs together with and

Anne Vegter Anne Vegter (born 31 December 1958, Delfzijl) is a Dutch poet, playwright and writer of children's literature. She is the first woman to hold the position of Dichter des Vaderlands (Dutch Poet Laureate). Early life Vegter attended a gymnasi ...

for their play ''Struisvogels op de Coolsingel''.

References

External links

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Anna Enquist at Poetry International

Anna Enquist at Digital Library for Dutch Literature
(in Dutch) {{DEFAULTSORT:Enquist, Anna 1945 births Living people Dutch women novelists Dutch women poets Writers from Amsterdam 20th-century Dutch women writers 20th-century Dutch novelists 21st-century Dutch novelists 21st-century Dutch women writers C. Buddingh' Prize winners