Peter Buwalda - Bonita Avenue
An honourable man destroyed by the disgrace brought upon him by his children – Peter Buwalda has given this universal and timeless theme a contemporary setting. Siem Sigerius’ life takes an upward path until 2000, the year in which an explosion at a fireworks factory causes chaos and destruction in the university town where he lives and works.
A man of humble origins, Sigerius makes his mark at competitive judo before seizing an opportunity to develop his talent for mathematics. He becomes a professor and later chancellor of the university, and he is on the point of accepting a ministerial post when fire engulfs a residential district of his home town. The disaster, based on a real event in the Dutch city of Enschede, is the background to dramatic revelations that have explosive repercussions for the Sigerius family. In the moral decline of his children – a son who descends into a life of serious crime, a favourite daughter who earns millions from internet pornography with the help of her psychologically unstable boyfriend – Sigerius identifies all the evils of his day.
Written with verve and ingeniously structured, Bonita Avenue is a true pageturner, but at the same time it raises ethical issues about integrity, family values, greed, the influence of upbringing and the unlimited availability of internet pornography.
Biography
Peter Buwalda studied Dutch language and literature, published short stories and worked as a journalist and as an editor at several publishing houses before deciding to devote himself to writing full time. His debut novel was a huge success with readers and literary critics alike.
Quotes
- ‘From the very first chapter Buwalda convincingly portrays a cad with a talent for mathematics and an obsession with judo. Buwalda has an easygoing style that is clear, precise and completely unpretentious.’ – De Groene Amsterdammer