Books like War and turpentine by Stefan Hertmans
‘War and Turpentine’ follows Urbain Martien, a Flemish artist and World War I veteran whose fragmented notebooks chronicle a life of art, loss, and survival. After his death in 1981, his grandson, a contemporary writer, delves into these journals, piecing together Urbain’s childhood under a lowly church painter, his escape from death in an iron foundry, and the moral battles he faced as a soldier. Through this intergenerational dialogue, the novel explores how war reshapes identity, family bonds, and artistic aspirations across time.
First publish date: 2016
Genre: Historical Fiction/20th Century Historical Fiction
Authors: Stefan Hertmans
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