Jeroen van Rooij
(Geldrop, NL, 1979) debuted in 2010 with De eerste hond in de ruimte (The First Dog in Space), tales of young people on all-night techno and drug binges that broaches themes of loneliness, addition and relationships. These collected stories had previously appeared in the Flemish literary magazine DW B. His second book Het licht (The Light, 2012), which made the Golden Book-Owl prize longlist, again focused on a group of friends who listen to music, experiment with drugs and sex, and endlessly keep up with social media until their lives are disrupted by a series of suicides. His 2014 poetry debut, Niemand had er enig idee van wat er aan de hand was (No One Had Any Idea What Was Going On), was nominated for the C. Buddingh Prize. Van Rooij's poems tend to conjure an uneasy, tense atmosphere via out-of-context quotes, showing a world that repeatedly defies our plans and expectations.
Past events
Friday Night Wintercafé: Spot On Young Poets
Francis Broekhuijsen presents the students of The Hague Montessori Lyceum, and the Johan de Witt College who read their own poetry, the result of workshops given by members of The Hague Poetry Guild. Young poets Jeroen van Rooij and Runa Svetlikova perform alongside.
Hello, Poetry and Music
Let yourself be seduced by poetry from home and abroad. Listen to the recitals of the poets, amongst whom three nominees of the VSB Poetry Prize. As a special commission by the festival, Dick van der Harst sets one of Adonis' poems to music.
