Photo: supplied/Roosmarijn Broersen
Yael Van der Wouden's first novel The Safekeep is a twisted tale of desire, obsession and loss set in the post-war Netherlands.
It was shortlisted for the 2024 Booker Prize, and now the 2025 Women's Prize for Fiction.
15 years after the end of the Second World War, the quiet life of a lonely young woman is upended by secrets and sex due to the arrival of an outsider, the "graceless young girlfriend" of her brother.
Yael's a creative writing lecturer and even has her own advice column, Dear David, where she channels the beautiful spirit of David Attenborough to help strangers through life's tribulations.
She catches up with Susie ahead of her upcoming Auckland Writers Festival event on May 17th.
