The Evenings, day 1: 22 December 1946/2025
Today, December 22nd of 2026, is the first day of reading The Evenings, the translation of De avonden by Gerard Reve. Reading this classic from 22-31 December is a tradition in Holland, although I have no clue how many people actually do it. This year, however, my wife also joins, so that makes for at least two. By reading it from 22 December until New Year's, a chapter a day, each chapter matches the day on which you read it.
It was kind of a weird experience reading the first chapter in English today. I know the book so well from all the annual readings, that I remember some passages by word. And now, of course, the actual words have changed. My first impression is that it makes the scenes at home with Frits, his mother and father less 'stingy', a bit nicer and more comfortable than they appear in the Dutch text – especially where Frits is concerned, because he really isn't a very nice person. This is reflected less in this English translation, I think. As I've read only the first chapter yet, let's not draw any real conclusions yet, though.
As I'm not only a nerd with respect to literature, but also to numbers, I conducted some quick lexical tests on the first chapter. I found it quite funny to see that one of the strongest n-grams in the chapter, and probably throughout the book, turns out to be the fourgram 'he said to himself'.
Fourgrams in the first chapter of 'The Evenings'
Yes, Frits talks to himself quite a lot, which is part of the appeal of the book, I think: you get to know Frits on a really personal, intimate level, as you not only are invited into his inner musings, but you can also frequently witness the differences between what Frits actually thinks, and what he eventually says.
Looking forward to tomorrow!