OUR NARROW HIDING PLACES

The physical suffering and psychological trauma inflicted on the Dutch people during the Nazi occupation influences the survivors and subsequent generations.

Drawing on his own family history, Jansma’s new novel spans multiple generations of a New Jersey clan with Dutch origins. At its center is matriarch Mieke Geborn, a baker’s daughter who endured World War II in the Hague and offers a child’s-eye view of the German occupation, as well as the massively destructive V2 bombs fired at Britain from the town’s seashore. Her family takes in Professor Willem Naaktgeboren, an old friend of her father’s, along with his wife and children, who were bombed out of their Rotterdam home. Naaktgeboren’s son, Rob, becomes Mieke’s constant companion and, much later, her husband. A none-too-surprising cast of characters shares their apartment building, including Jewish and gay neighbors and a keen Nazi sympathizer. This historic narrative alternates with a more contemporary account of Mieke (now 80) in America, which has been her home for 50 years. Her grandson, Will, comes to visit, and there are reminiscences about Will’s father’s mental health issues, as well as considerations of some recent stresses on Will himself. A third element, a series of whimsical/philosophical/mythical chapters voiced by eels, recounts fairy stories and historical aspects of Dutch life. The eels may have the best lines. Other than the grimly vivid description of near-starvation during the Hunger Winter of 1944-45, there’s a lack of intensity to both the wartime and contemporary storylines, connected though they are by themes of lost fathers, heritage, and mental burdens.

An oblique take on a dark episode of wartime endurance.