The Pelican

“Josip and Andrej are insignificant men in an insignificant coastal town in 1980s Yugoslavia who form an improbable relationship as each other’s blackmailer in this funny, serious, clever novel by a Dutch writer and director.” — The New York Times

“Josip and Andrej are insignificant men in an insignificant coastal town in 1980s Yugoslavia who form an improbable relationship as each other’s blackmailer in this funny, serious, clever novel by a Dutch writer and director.” — The New York Times

Martin Michael Driessen is a Dutch opera and theater director, translator, and writer. He is the author of the novels Gars, Father of God, A True Hero, Rivers (which was awarded the prestigious ECI Literature Prize), and The Pelican. Writing as Eva Wanjek, he cowrote the novel Lizzie with highly acclaimed and prize-nominated poet Liesbeth Lagemaat. In 2018 he published a collection of short stories, My First Murder. His work has been translated into English, Italian, German, Spanish, Slovenian, and Hungarian. For more information, visit www.martinmichaeldriessen.com. Jonathan Reeder, a native of Upstate New York and longtime resident of Amsterdam, enjoys a dual career as a literary translator and performing musician. Along with his work as a professional bassoonist, he translates opera libretti and essays on classical music, as well as contemporary Dutch fiction and poetry. His translated novels include Conny Braam’s The Cocaine Salesman, Peter Buwalda’s Bonita Avenue, Bram Dehouck’s comic thriller Sleepless Summer, and Tonio by Adri van der Heijden. Additionally, he has translated novels, essays, and short stories by Mano Bouzamour, Christine Otten, Maarten Inghels, and Rodaan Al Galidi.