Yael van der Wouden

Yael van der Wouden is a writer and teacher

She currently lectures in creative writing and comparative literature in the Netherlands. Her essay on Dutch identity and Jewishness, ‘On (Not) Reading Anne Frank’, received a notable mention in The Best American Essays 2018. Her writing has appeared in LitHub, Electric Literature, The Offing and Elle.com, amongst others. The Safekeep is her debut novel and was shortlisted for the Booker Prize 2024.

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A remarkable debut about obsession and loss, set in an isolated Netherlands house. The author draws us into a world as carefully calibrated as a Dutch still-life

— The 2024 judges on The Safekeep

A Q&A with Yael van Der Wouden

Watch our film

Read more from Yael van der Wouden

Yael van der Wouden interview: ‘For a long time, my relationship to literature was pretty flat’

The author of The Safekeep, shortlisted for the Booker Prize 2024, talks about reimagining personal and national narratives, and the book from last year’s Booker shortlist that she can’t get out of her head

An extract from The Safekeep by Yael van der Wouden

An exhilarating tale of twisted desire, histories and homes – and the legacy of one of the 20th century’s greatest tragedies

Reading guide: The Safekeep by Yael van der Wouden

Whether you’re new to The Safekeep or have read it and would like to explore it more deeply, discover more in our comprehensive guide

All nominated books

The Safekeep

An exhilarating tale of twisted desire, histories and homes – and the legacy of one of the 20th century’s greatest tragedies

Yael van der Wouden

A Q&A with Yael van Der Wouden

Watch our film

Read more from Yael van der Wouden

Yael van der Wouden interview: ‘For a long time, my relationship to literature was pretty flat’

An extract from The Safekeep by Yael van der Wouden

Reading guide: The Safekeep by Yael van der Wouden

All nominated books

The Safekeep

Features

Meet the designers behind the Booker Prize 2024's bespoke bound books

The Booker Prize Indie Bookshop Spotlight competition 2024: Meet our winning booksellers

A quick chat with the Booker Prize 2024 shortlistees: watch our video interviews

Why this year’s Booker shortlist is all about the emotional pull of home

The 2024 shortlistees on the book that challenged their worldview

Watch the Booker Prize 2024 shortlist films

What the judges said about the Booker Prize 2024 shortlist

Reading guide: The Safekeep by Yael van der Wouden

Six things you need to know about the Booker Prize 2024 shortlist

The 2024 longlistees on the book that inspired them to become a writer

Yael van der Wouden interview: ‘For a long time, my relationship to literature was pretty flat’

Quiz: Which book from the Booker Prize 2024 longlist should you read first?

An extract from The Safekeep by Yael van der Wouden

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