Cees Nooteboom (1933-2026), the Dutch author, died two days ago, on February 11, 2026.

Known for his novels, poetry, and travel writing, Nooteboom was one of Europe’s leading contemporary writers. He has written 23 books about his travels alone.

His notable novels include Rituals, which won the Pegasus Prize in 1980; The Following Story; and Lost Paradise. 

I have two of his books: a poetry collection, “Light Everywhere,” and a novel, “Mokusei – A Love Story,” both published by Seagull Books.

Nooteboom received numerous awards, including the Goethe Prize and the Austrian State Prize for European Literature, and was mentioned as a candidate for the Nobel Prize in Literature.

In 2020, he received the esteemed Formentor Prize, which acknowledged him as ‘a universal author aware of his place within the great European cultural tradition’ and praised him for ‘pushing the boundaries of literary genres through his relentless creativity’. 

Here is one of his short poems titled “Lucretius” –

Housed in your body, one poet,

One thinker. The poem is a cosmos.

The world, a word.

Your thinking was chance

In verse with nothing left to chance.

Your letters, atoms.

Cicero was right, though he didn’t know it.

The twenty-one letters of the alphabet

Still spell your name.