National Book Week 2011

This week is National Book Week 2011. On the first Sunday you may travel for free through the whole country with the NS (Dutch Railroads) with the gift book of the week as a ticket. Well, ain't that nice?

This year there was a special occasion. The NS had transferred ONE train with FIVE compartments into a storyteller train. And I'd get an invitation!!! Several authors passed by to tell their stories and/or read aloud from (one of their) books.

A blip, I thought. But what to blip, how to blip, 1001 possibilities to blip, you know what I mean?

Finally I decided to blip a portrait of Kader Abdolah (Iran 1954), the author of the gift book 2011 "De kraai" (The Crow). Kader Abdolah is now one of our most famous authors with his books translated in 21 countries. One of his novels "Het huis van de moskee" (The House Of The Mosque) is adapted for the screen in an international production.

I took the photo at the moment the act was done, television camera and journalists gone to the next compartment and there he was, looking satisfied and consuming the afterglow of the enthousiasm and applause from his listeners ...