STEFAN HERTMANS — WAR & TURPENTINE

The Rokeby Venus by Velasquez, slashed by Mary Richardson, a suffragette

My aunt sent me War & Turpentine, after hearing about it from a Belgian. The book, which claims to be a novel, delivers exactly — and with dark splendor— what those who conspired to get it into my hands (aunt & Belgian) claimed it would: heaps of interesting facts about Belgium. Flanders specifically. And I say it claims to be a novel, because I have some doubts about this classification; like a work of W.G. Sebald, whom Mr. Hertmans quotes and seems to take some inspiration from, it’s comprised of a lot of historical facts, discussions of art, and personal memories. This literary mix all orbits around the memoirs of a grandfather, the indelible Martien, a liver of a difficult life, a hero of WWI, and an an artist. Toward the aim of reconstructing the life of his ancestor, Mr. Hertmans speaks with his family, visits sites and paintings, and wonders aloud. His research gets folded into the narrative in ways I appreciate, as they serve to portray not only Martien but Martien’s ripple effect across generations and the lives of others. Here’s my speculation as to why Mr. Hertmans calls this book a novel: he knew he let his imagination run away at times (such as, in some of my favorite scenes, during the reconstructions of Martien’s foundry work as a teenager); and to know this, as an author, seems to have disqualified the book from being a memoir. But I don’t know. I plan to write to the author and see if I can find out. First I plan to see some of the art and battlefields it discusses. I’m here in Belgium, after all.  Read, July 2019.