After the overwhelming success of the rediscovered debut novel by Ida Simons, one of her most beautiful novellas now appears in a special edition.

‘The truth should be told: kids really enjoyed life in the camps. They didn’t have to go to school, their parents couldn’t keep an eye on them, because they were working all day.’ Right away in the first sentences of In Memory of Mizzi Ida Simons charms her readers with her unmatched lightly tone, even in the most difficult circumstances.

The life of a mother and her son in the camp is hard but when the Jewish doctor Herr Keppler asks if the boy likes dogs, they both jump up. Keppler introduces Mizzi to them: not just a regular dog, Mizzi smiles, and mother and son are both captivated by her.

You wouldn’t expect it, Keppler explains, but there are many animals being kept in the camp – until they are discovered.

As long as she can, Mizzi smiles at the prisoners and the sick, at the children and their parents. The reader of this amazing, almost fairy-like story, gets a rare look in daily life of those without prospect, and in the perseverance of those who fight for their existence.

In this exceptional novella, published for the first time since 1956, Ida Simons found her voice: a soft, subtle voice, which doesn’t even falter during the when telling a story in which everything is a stake.

In Memory of Mizzi reads like a preview of what Simons will achieve in her marvellous novel A Foolish Virgin. The wonderous lightness meets you from the first page.’ – NRC Handelsblad

‘In Memory of Mizzi is so powerful and staggering. Please publish all her books. Thanks in advance.’ – Annelies Verbeke in De Standaard

‘A memorable first sentence: “The truth needs to be told for once: the children thought life in a camp was wonderful.”’ – de Volkskrant

‘In Memory of Mizzi is a loving novella, a wonderful gift from a mother to her son, a very nuanced and realistic insight into daily life in a WWII camp. But Mizzi has the most beautiful role, a dog who greets humans unprejudiced. The helplessness of its ‘smile’ is staggering.’ –Tzum

‘On how a dog can use his impressive smile against the destruction. Powerful, honest, but in vain.’ – Charlotte Mutsaers