The Song of Stork and Dromedary: Nobel worthy

Novelist Anjet Daanje has garnered attention as a potential Nobel prize in literature contender, thanks to her 2022 work The Song of Stork and Dromedary. This novel, loosely inspired by the life of Emily Brontë, author of Wuthering Heights, opens in 1847 with a villager burying Eliza May Drayden, a writer whose book was initially scorned but later became a classic.

The novel intertwines 11 interconnected stories revolving around Drayden and her sister Millicent, who is based on Charlotte Brontë. Set on the English moors, the narrative incorporates various elements such as news articles, diary excerpts, letters, and even parts of Drayden's own novel. Themes of sisterhood, the status of women, and the passage of time are central to the story.

The book received numerous awards, including the Boekenbon Literature Prize and the Libris Literature Prize, making it the first book to win both accolades. Daanje, who has published eight novels prior, was awarded the Constantijn Huygens Prize in 2023. The English translation is currently available, and the author's work is highly regarded as compelling and brilliant.