Judith Fanto was born in 1969 as Geertje Judith van den Heuvel in Delft, grew up in Voorburg and The Hague and studied in Nijmegen, London and Amsterdam. She is now the mother of three children, a lawyer and a publicist. Since her debut in 2020, she has used Fanto – the family name of her ancestors – as a literary pseudonym. Fanto’s novel Viktor is based on the adventures of her Viennese-Jewish family. Viktor has been awarded the Hebban Literature Prize for the best Dutch debut of 2020 and has been nominated for the Boekhandelsprijs 2021. Fanto’s debut was published in Germany, Austria and Switzerland and will be published in Russia in 2025. More than 50,000 copies were sold in the Netherlands. Fanto’s long-awaited second novel Narcis will be published on 25 February 2025.
BOOKS
Vienna, 1928. The wealthy Viennese-Jewish Rosenbaum family has a hard time dealing with their youngest son Viktor: an unconventional rascal, womanizer and bonvivant. But when the annexation of Austria by Germany in 1938 becomes life-threatening for the Jews of Vienna, Viktor’s character traits come in handy. With undaunted courage and audacity, Viktor rescues everyone he loves.
Nijmegen, 1995. Law student Geertje, meanwhile the youngest member of the Rosenbaum family, who has since fled to the Netherlands, rebels against the great Silence in her family. Why does no one openly speak about their Jewish origine? And why does no one like to talk about Viktor, her grandfather’s brother? When Geertje goes searching for answers , she stumbles upon an unlikely family secret…
Haarlem, 1916. When his mother dies in a fatal accident, the family of his Austrian father claims ten-year-old Manno. In the summer of 1916, the boy is forced to leave neutral Netherlands and move to the war-torn metropolis of Vienna. The demands that his new life places on him drive him to despair, until he makes friends with five peers at a summer camp. In the decades that follow, their close friendship survives the most diverse trials. But when Hitler invades Austria on the eve of the Second World War, politics become personal and each of them has to show their true colours.
In this novel, which is again based on true events, Fanto explores the phenomenon of ‘friendship’. How does this chemical connection between people come about, the connection that forges deep, close bonds? What does it mean when a friend betrays your trust? And is the desire for revenge inherent to mankind?
Let’s keep in touch! From time to time Judith likes to tell you about the ins and outs of her debut novel Viktor, about her new novel or funny anecdotes from her life in the countryside. Leave your email address and receive an occasional writing in your inbox. See you soon!
REVIEWS
‘A rich, loving tribute to her family.’
Newspaper Trouw on Viktor
‘Debut novel full of humor, wisdom and melancholy.’
Newspaper De Telegraaf on Viktor
‘We have to go back to Theodor Fontane in the nineteenth century to find a comparable level of storytelling. A very impressive book.’
Newspaper Friesch Dagblad on Viktor
Fanto’s writing style, the quality one can easily recognize from the first sentence, her scene construction and the form of this novel definitely leave you wanting more. A wonderful first novel.’
Jury of the Hebban Debut Prize 2020 on Viktor
‘Viktor is charming, beautiful. It is full of sentences to underline several times.’
Books and Macchiatos on Viktor
CONTACT
Would you like to ask or tell Judith Fanto something? Would you like to book her as a speaker or approach her for a piece of writing? Judith Fanto is best reached through the email addresses of her publisher and her literary agent Kitty Bakker.
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