The End and How to Survive It: 119 Writers Face Death

Nothing in our lives is predictable, except death. And it is precisely that ending that is our biggest question mark. How do we do it, die and say goodbye? Doesn't death always come too soon, is life ever over? And do our dreams and actions even make sense if everything just ends one day? In The End - and How to Survive It, 100 writers look death in the eye. They draw on personal experiences - from lovers who suddenly collapse in the grass to fathers they lost far too early - and connect them with literature, which has danced around the mystery of death for centuries. Literature that searches for words for what leaves us speechless, and which, who knows, may contain a form of immortality. Zadie Smith, Bart Moeyaert, Philippe Claudel, Siri Hustvedt, David Van Reybrouck, Johan Harstad, Aidan Chambers, Sandro Veronesi, Peter Buwalda, Joke Hermsen, Ilja Leonard Pfeijffer, Claire Messud and 88 others look ahead to their ultimate deadline. Their insights were recorded by Katrien Steyaert and Gaea Schoeters. They turned The End into a comforting and inspiring book about an inevitable experience. The illustrations in the book are by JeRoen Murré. Gaea Schoeters (1976) writes novels, theatre texts and opera librettos. Sometimes (and secretly) she ventures into poetry. She made her debut with the travel book Meisjes, Moslims en motoren (Girls, Muslims and Motorbikes), followed by the novels De kunst van het vallen (The Art of Falling) and Zonder Titel #1 (Untitled #1). She also writes for De Standaard der Letteren (The Standard of Letters), and in her spare time she occasionally kicks the world in the shins in columns and opinion pieces, but always with the best intentions. Katrien Steyaert (1982) is an independent journalist, with a focus on culture and especially literature. Since 2005, she has conducted interviews with inspiring writers for series in De Standaard der Letteren, and she regularly does so live on stage. She also interviews creatives and scientists for Iedereen Leest, Knack Weekend and KU Leuven, and has published non-fiction books, such as 1914-1918. 100 jaar later and Welkom aan boord.