The difficult love

Jules van den Broeck, Walter's brother, who is thirteen years older, leaves for America in 1950 at the age of twenty-two, at the invitation of his grandfather. He works there as a carpenter, warehouse manager, dishwasher and croupier. But things don't work out between the conscientious grandfather and his lively grandson. Jules chases girls too much. Two years later he marries a Mexican. While he builds a life as a businessman in Mexico, he has to deal with earthquakes, drug wars and economic crises. His marriage also runs into troubled waters. Despite countless promises, Jules only returns to his homeland for the first time after sixteen years. With De zwaare liefde, which is a brotherly book to the full, Walter van den Broeck finally fills the striking gap in his tumultuous family history. 'A new highlight in the family saga with both personal and general human allure.' – Jos Borré Walter van den Broeck is one of our best prose writers and Flanders' most popular and most performed playwright. He received the State Prize for both disciplines. He was a member of the Royal Academy for Dutch Language and Literature. He was awarded honorary citizenship in both his birthplace Olen and his hometown of Turnhout.