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The press about Brothers
"It is a compelling and intensely moving look at life, death and love in the context of sexual emergence and growing up. This thought-provoking and intriguing book deals with the important issues of death, sexuality and teenage turmoil, but is first and foremost a brilliantly crafted and compelling story, eloquently conveyed and fiercely moving." AXM
"This month a significant addition to the library has arrived in the form of Brothers... Counsellor Tracy Rodgers was so impressed with the way this book addresses key issues of bereavement that she began using passages from Brothers in her workshops. She also recommended the book to Sean Neilson (15), whose brother, Ryan, died a year ago.... Sean was "bowled over by the book. The feelings Luke had about the death of Marius, the anger, the disbelief, are just the feelings I had.""
- From "Learning to survive death", an article by Anne Johnstone, The Herald (Glasgow) (28th May 2001)
"It's not depressing in the slightest, simply very moving. Quite early in the book, a big boulder of sadness got stuck in my throat while reading Brothers on the 11:48 from London Bridge. When the train arrived at Charing Cross, I was faced with the dilemma of staying put and sobbing or getting off and snapping out of it. What became clear was this book is quite special. It deserves undivided attention and is best read alone on a comfy chair with time to spare and tissues to trash.
While pitched at teenagers, it's neither patronising in it's simplicity nor sparing in it's punches.... The odd tensions and profound moments shared by members of a family are universally recognisable, and Van Lieshout captures them with impressive clarity."
"Only a robot could escape the emotional impact of this amazing book. While wishing books like this existed when I was a teenager, I'm profoundly grateful to have experienced it as an adult. Utterly mindblowing."
- QX Books
Book Of The Week!
"Clever, funny and moving"
"Sensitive and compelling"
"A classic story in terms of its subject matter; life, death and love all in the context of growing up and trying to make sense of it all (in the same mould as, say, Catcher in the Rye)... Tender, sensitive and poignant. It's a very moving story. This is an amazingly insightful, differentiated, subtle and beautiful novel."
"Brothers is a moving experience... It is certainly a page turner. I wanted to read further at every point... Emotionally charged and handled with immense sensitivity."
- The Observer
"When Luke's mother decides to mark the six months since the death of his brother, Marius, with a bonfire of his possessions, Luke rescues his diary. When he begins to read his brother's words, he adds to them, establishing a silent dialogue, providing his own insight into Marius's retellings of shared experiences. He learns that his brother knew that he is gay; indeed, they both were. This is a moving and honest portrayal of a frighteningly fractured family, ending with revelations that make a kinder, more understanding future faintly possible. Written in Dutch, it has won awards in Holland and Germany - and deservedly so." (June 5th 2001)
Book Of The Month! (June 13th 2001)
"Too much children's fiction lies by omission. When dealing with tricky subjects such as death, sexuality and family relationships, it prettifies the emotions and offers unlikely messages of hope. Not this book: it is hard as a bone and all the better for it.
The way it unflinchingly depicts the emotions of the mother - so locked in her own grief that she can offer no solace to her son - is particularly powerful. There are no easy answers here; just recognition that life must and does go on and that some bonds are never broken, even by death."
- The Guardian
"The Verdict: In clear and simple language, one of the best books written for adolescents about being gay."
- Town & Country Post online
Rank: 5 stars!
"Consicious respect for the teenage reader's intellegence"
"Brothers is certain to be categorized as a book about being gay and coming out, and it does indeed explore these matters with admirable power and insight... But Brothers is much more than a 'gay novel': it deals with illness, death, bereavement, with parent-child relationships, and with the mystery of brotherly love, in a way which enriches teenage literature. It deserves as warm a welcome here as it has gained in Holland and Germany."
- Books for Keeps
"Brothers by Ted van Lieshout, in particular, establishes the list as an authentic Teenage list, and signals that HarperCollins intends it to be a venue for thoughtful, atmospheric young adult fiction, rather than 12+ froth."
"The way in which van Lieshout conveys a post-mortem dialogue between Luke and his brother (who has wasted away from Wilson's disease - though we don't discover the cause of death till near the end of the book) is extraordinarily moving."
"The intensity of the reading experience is enhanced in this case, rather than diminished, by a peculiar absence of any sense of place."
- Achuka
"Luke's bravery in facing up to his problems is inspiring and touching, and his parents' floundering and very different ways of coping with their son's death is beautifully observed. You can't fail to be moved by this book."
- T2
"Brothers is a moving, skilfully written and poignant story about the voids which can exist even between family members and the tragedy of letting our differences divide us from those who should be closest to us."
- Amazon.co.uk
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The Dutch press about Gebr.
"Ingenious" De Groene Amsterdammer
"Gebr. is a beautiful, silent and slow story with dialogues that keep singing in your head, with questions and feelings that leave no one untouched" Algemeen Dagblad
"Up to now there were few good books about homosexuality. Dance on my grave by Aidan Chambers was the book on the subject so far. Gebr. is more authentic, more direct, livelier, simpler to read, and at least as strong" Trouw
"Sentimental? No. Moving? Very much so. Van Lieshout has written, in clear and simple language, one of the most beautiful books for adolescents I have read in ages" Het Parool
"Ingenious and moving" Medisch Contact
"But the most beautiful of Gebr. are the observations of common things the brothers often shared without being aware of it, domestic situations that are still the same and yet different now that Marius isn?t around anymore to see them" NRC Handelsblad
"Extremely fascinating, simply gorgeous" Brabants Dagblad
"Excellently digestable. Or better said: it is one of the best books about homosexuality I know. It grabs you by the throat and grips you from start to finish" De Stem
"Very special and impressive" Friesch Dagblad
"Beautiful construction" Vrij Nederland
"Gebr. is a moving and touching novel, very well constructed by Van Lieshout" De Volkskrant
"I must confess that hardly ever a book got me so in it's grip. I've read Gebr. standing up, sitting down, lying down. I only put it aside when I really had to" BoekID
"Breathtaking beautiful, pearls of the art of writing" Gooi- en Eemlander
"A very vulnerable book, that has made an indelible impression on me" HN-Magazine
"Read this book" Courant Nieuws van de Dag
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The German press about Bruder
"Bruder ist der Titel dieses ungewöhnlichen und unbedingt zu empfehlenden Buchs... Unglaublich einfühlsam gestaltet Ted van Lieshout dieses Kennenlernen nach dem Tod, frei von Kitsch und Sentimentalität. Die Angst, sich zum Anderssein zu bekennen, wird genauso behutsam thematisiert wie die Angst vor dem Sterben" Wetzlarer Neue Zeitung
"Van Lieshouts auch sprachlich hervorragender Roman ist eine im besten Sinne ergreifende Lektüre, ein intensives Leseerlebnis, das weit über die 173 Seiten hinauswirkt" Osnabrücker Zeitung
"Obwohl Ted van Lieshout als Schriftsteller und Illustrator ein Profi ist, der für seine Arbeiten schon eine Menge Auszeichnungen erhalten hat, scheint es mir, als ob dieses Buch auch für ihn etwas ganz Besonderes war... Grosse Kunst entsteht aus Schmerz... Hier wird nicht gedeutet und nicht geurteilt, wie es jemand machen würde, der sich erst über den Intellekt in diese Situation hineinversetzen muss. Hier wird Reagieren lediglich registriert, auch das macht die Echtheit des Buches aus... Auch denkt man beim lesen daran, wie setlsam die grossen Dinge mit den banalen Kleinigkeiten zusammenspiele. Es ist ein weises Buch" Neues Deutschland
"Ein in jeder Hinsicht aussergewöhnliches Buch, sprachlich und inhaltlich dicht und ausgefeilt. Sehr empfohlen!" Neue Jugendbücher nr. 197 1999
"Gleich zwei Titel aus dem Middelhauve Literaturprogramm empfehlen die Juroren [aus Deutschland, Österreich und der Schweiz] der Deutschlandfunk-Bestenliste "Die Besten 7 - Bücher für junge Leser" im Dezember: Ted van Lieshouts Bruder..." Treu Feucht, PPA
"Nachdrücklig empfohlen... Ein Adoleszenzroman von ganz besonderer Art... Genau das richtige Mass an Jungenhaftigkeit und Besonnenheit hält die Leser gebannt. Ein unscheinbarer Umschlag tauscht und verlangt unbedingt Vermittlung eines ausserordentlich wertvollen Buches" Jugendbelletristik, SBD-Angebot
"Beim Lesen entsteht eine Sogwirkung. Es ist der intime, persöhnliche Stil des Tagebuchromans, der das bewirkt" ekz-Informationsdienst
"Ein schwieriges Thema und ein meisterhaft geschriebenes Tagebuch, spannend und mitfüllend, das wegen seiner besonderen Form Jugendlichen ab 14 Jahrenn und speziell Buben empfohlen werden kann" Österreichisches Bibliotheks Werk
"Dieses Buch hat mich unglaublich gefesselt und gerührt. Es hat mich traurig gemacht und mich zugleich von innen gewärmt" Der Bunte Hund
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