Your favourite Belgian authors are....
Belgian literature is extremely broad and it would be rather simplistic to honour just one author, as the fields are so varied. Here are the results of our survey.
If you want to immerse yourself in a novel by a French-speaking Belgian author, the prize goes to Amélie Nothomb; this diplomat's daughter with an original personality and a fluid yet punchy writing style has been translated into forty languages. She is followed in the rankings by Georges Simenon, known for his detective novels, and Hergé, father of the comic strip Tintin, his tireless reporter.
On the Dutch-speaking side, poet, novelist and critic Stefan Hertmans is at the top of the podium; his war dramas have been translated into many languages and have travelled the world. He is closely followed by Hugo Claus, another eclectic author with more than 150 works, including the unforgettable 'Chagrin des Belges' (The Sorrow of Belgium). And in third place is the young Lize Spit, whose first novel 'Het Smelt' set the literary world on fire.
It is impossible to mention all the authors you named, as the list is so long, but here are those whose names appeared most often among many others: André Franquin, Armel Job, David Van Reybrouck, Dimitri Verhulst, Emile Verhaeren, Ernest Claes, Françoise Mallet-Joris, Hendrik Conscience, Jacqueline Harpman, Jean Van Hamme, Jef Geeraerts, Maurice Carême, Maurice Maeterlinck, Pascale Seys, Peyo, Philippe Geluck, Pieter Aspe, Thomas Gunzig, Willem Elsschot.
They should brighten up your long winter evenings.
Thanks again to the many participants and enjoy your reading!