The Convert

In a small village in Provence, a pogrom and a hidden treasure have been talked about since time immemorial. At the end of the nineteenth century, a number of sensational Jewish documents are found in a synagogue in Cairo. Stefan Hertmans discovers the traces of a distinguished Christian maiden from the eleventh century, who threw her life away for love of a Jewish boy. He literally follows this woman, who flees with her forbidden love and makes a dizzying journey, chased by everything and everyone.
Stefan Hertmans based his novel The Convert on historical sources. This takes him into a chaotic world of passion, hate, love and death, and ultimately takes him from Cairo back to the small Provencal village where he has been at home for decades.
'It is pitch dark around them, the deepest hour of the night. The Big Dipper has slid down from the dome of the sky. Somewhere an owl calls lonely. A few stars twinkle vaguely between the silently blowing leaves. Something moves, not far from her, she is cold and shivers all over. Then someone stands above her, tottering, dark and swaying. This is my death, she thinks. She hears panting. Only then does she recognize David. He falls down again next to her, they take each other's hands, remain there until morning.'