The Book of Everything
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The Book of Everything (Dutch: Het boek van alle dingen) is a children's novel by Dutch author Guus Kuijer, published in 2004 by Querido.
The book was awarded the Gouden Griffel literary award in 2005.
The English translation was published in 2006.
Plot summary[edit]
The book, set in Amsterdam, relates the tale of a nine-year-old boy named Thomas who see things no one else can, such as invisible hail that "ripped all the leaves from the trees", and tropical fish in the canal. Thomas lives in a family of four: his parents and his sister, Margot. They are not, however, a harmonious family, as their father repeatedly hits their mother, and punishes Thomas by beating him with a wooden spoon. He is a very religious man, but he fears embarrassment and is said to "not belong with people". Thomas writes down everything in his "Book of Everything", a diary which holds his thoughts.
Stage adaptation[edit]
The Book of Everything was adapted for the stage by Australian playwright Richard Tulloch. The adaptation was first produced by Company B Belvoir and Kim Carpenter’s Theatre of Image at Belvoir St Upstairs Theatre, Sydney, on 2 January 2010,[1] with the following cast:
- Margot: Alison Bell
- Father / Bumbiter: Peter Carroll
- Mrs. van Amersfoort: Julie Forsyth
- Musician: Iain Grandage
- Mother: Claire Jones
- Aunty Pie: Deborah Kennedy
- Jesus: John Leary
- Eliza: Yael Stone
- Thomas: Matthew Whittet
- Director, Neil Armfield
- Set & costume designer, Kim Carpenter
- Composer, Iain Grandage
- Lighting designer, Nigel Levings
- Choreographer, Julia Cotton
- Sound designer, Steve Francis
This production was nominated for Best Play at the 2010 Helpmann Awards. The script was published in 2011 by Currency Press.[2]
The production was also performed off-Broadway at the New Victory Theater in New York City in 2012, and in Melbourne in 2013.[3]
References[edit]
- ^ "The Book of Everything theatre review (Southbank Theatre, Melbourne)". crikey.com.au. Archived from the original on 2013-12-06.
- ^ Tulloch, Richard (2011). The Book of Everything. Sydney: Currency Press. ISBN 978-0-86819-933-7.
- ^ Saltz, Rachel (23 April 2012). "His Imagination Leaps Onto the Page: The Book of Everything, at the New Victory Theater". The New York Times. Retrieved 2 October 2015.
