Johan Fabricius facts for kids

Fabricius at the Italian front (1915)

Johan Wigmore Fabricius (born August 24, 1899 – died June 21, 1981) was a famous Dutch writer, journalist, and adventurer. He wrote many books, including popular stories for children.

Johan Fabricius was born in Bandung, Java. He wrote about 60 books in his lifetime. One of his most famous children's books is De Scheepsjongens van Bontekoe (published in 1924). This book was so popular that it was reprinted 28 times by 2003!

About Johan Fabricius

Early Life and Family

Johan Fabricius was born in Bandung, which was then called the Dutch East Indies. His father, Jan Fabricius, was also a journalist and a writer of plays. This helped Johan get into the world of arts and writing. Johan was a tall man and was good at many different art forms.

He spent about ten years of his childhood in the Dutch East Indies. Even as an adult, he visited the area many times. This strong connection to the Indies influenced many of his stories.

Education and Art Skills

Johan went to school in different places. He studied in the Indies, the Netherlands, and even for a short time in Paris. In 1914, he joined the Hogere Burgerschool in The Hague. However, he soon moved to the Academie van Beeldende Kunsten, an art academy.

At the academy, Johan showed a great talent for drawing portraits. He later used this skill to draw pictures for his own books. For example, he illustrated a popular series of five books called "De wondere avonturen van Arretje Nof". These books were advertisements for a company that made oil products. His illustrations helped make these books a success.

In 1925, Johan married Ruth Freudenburg. They had three children together.

Becoming a Writer and Traveler

After his time in The Hague, Fabricius joined the Austrian army. He worked as a war painter. He spent a few months on the Pavia front, where soldiers from Bosnia fought against Italian troops. Some of his letters home were even published in a literary magazine called De Gids.

In 1922, his first novel, Eiko van den Reigerhof, was published. He had written it a few years earlier. Around this time, Fabricius was trying out many different creative jobs. He worked as an illustrator, painter, stage actor, and even designed costumes. He also followed his father's path and wrote plays, some of which were performed on stage.

Breakthrough Books

Johan Fabricius became truly famous as a writer with his humorous novel Het meisje met de blauwe hoed. This book was about a soldier's life and was based on his own experiences in the military. It was a huge success! The book was even made into a movie in 1934. Later, in 1974, it became a musical for television.

His book De scheepsjongens van Bontekoe (1934) became his most well-known work. It was based on the true story of a 17th-century Dutch captain named Willem Bontekoe. Captain Bontekoe was shipwrecked on his way to the Indies. Fabricius added three fictional young characters who sailed with Bontekoe. This made it easy for young readers to imagine themselves in the story.

This book slowly became a best-seller. A statue of the three fictional boys has been in the harbor of Hoorn since 1968. In 2007, the book was even turned into a national award-winning movie. By 2016, over 300,000 copies of the book had been sold.

Travels and Inspiration

Johan Fabricius loved to travel. He visited many places around the world. In 1922, he went to Argentina and Paraguay. His honeymoon was a year-long trip along the Mediterranean Sea. He also lived in Vienna and Capri. In 1936, he traveled around the world, which brought him back to the Indies.

His travels and experiences gave him many ideas for his novels. His books often combined exciting drama with interesting places and unique characters. He wrote in a relaxed style, full of humor and fun stories.

In the 1930s, Fabricius was very popular and creative. He wrote a best-selling series of three adventure novels set in 18th-century Italy. These were Komedianten trokken voorbij (1931), Melodie der verten (1932), and De dans om de galg (1934). Komedianten trokken voorbij even won an award.

World War II and Later Life

When World War II started, Fabricius was living in Antwerp with his family. They had to flee to England, traveling through Saint-Malo. In London, he worked for the Dutch news department of the BBC. He started as a news reader and then became a freelance reporter.

In 1945, he was sent to Asia as a reporter for The Times newspaper and the BBC. He hoped to see the liberation of the Indies. In September 1945, he flew to Batavia (now Jakarta). He was one of the first foreign reporters there. His memories of the country, which was affected by war and revolution, were published in his 1947 book Hoe ik Indië terugvond. At the end of 1945, he left Asia and moved to the United Kingdom.

He lived in the UK until 1956, when he moved back to the Netherlands permanently. His first wife died in 1968. That same year, he married Anna Cornelia Bleeker. Johan Fabricius continued to travel and wrote at least one book every year until he passed away. Many of his later novels were set in the Dutch Indies and focused on local topics. A lot of his work was reprinted and translated, especially for readers in the US and UK.

Johan Fabricius continued to write and publish until his death on June 21, 1981, in Glimmen. He was buried in the nearby village of Noordlaren. He always had many readers who enjoyed his stories.

Famous Books by Johan Fabricius

Here are some of Johan Fabricius's well-known books:

• "Eiko van de Reigershof" (1922) - This was his very first book.
• De Scheepsjongens van Bontekoe (1923) - This book was translated as Java Ho!: The Adventures of Four Boys Amid Fire, Storm and Shipwreck. It was made into a movie in 2007.
• Het meisje met de blauwe hoed (1927) - This means The girl with the blue hat. It was made into a movie in 1934 and again in 1972.
• Charlotte's groote reis (1928) - This means Charlotte's grand voyage.
• De wondere avonturen van Arretje Nof (1928) - This means The wondrous adventures of Arretje Nof. These books were created for a company that made oil products.
• Komedianten trokken voorbij (1931)
• Melodie der verten (1932)
• De dans om de galg (1934) - This means The dance around the gallow.
• Leeuwen hongeren in Napels (1934) - This means The lions starve in Naples.
• Son of Marietta (1936)
• Eiland der demonen (1941) - This means Island of demons.
• A Castle in Carinthia (1941)
• Nacht over Java (1944) - This means Night over Java.
• De kraton (1945)
• Halfbloed (1947) - This means Halfblood.
• Java Revisited (1947)
• Hotel Vesuvius (1948)
• De grote geus (1949)
• Brandende Aarde: De Vernieling en Evacuatie van de Olieterreinen in Nederlandsch-Indië (1949)
• The Great Ordeal (1951)
• Mijn huis staat achter de kim (1951)
• A Dutchman at large: Memoirs (1952)
• Een wereld in beroering (1952)
• Gordel van smaragd (1953)
• Setoewo, de tijger (1956) - This means Setoewo, the tiger.
• Mortal pageant: A romance of the year of the Great Plague in Florence (1956)
• Luie stoel (1957) - This means Lazy chair.
• Schimmenspel (1958)
• De heilige paarden (1959) - This means The sacred horses.
• Jongensspel (1963) - This means Boy's play.
• Nacht zonder zegen (1963) - This means Night without blessing.
• Herinneringen van een oude pruik (1963) - This means Memories of an old whig.
• Hopheisa, in regen en wind (1964)
• Weet je nog, Yoshi? (1966) - This means Do you still remember, Yoshi?.
• Dag, Leidseplein (1968) - This means Goodbye, Leidseplein.
• Wij Tz'e Hsi, keizerin van China (1968)
• Wittebroodsweken met Mama (1969)
• De paradijsklok (1971)
• Partnerruil niet uitgesloten (1972) - This means Swinging not excluded.
• Devil in the tower (1973)
• Het portret (1974) - This means The portrait.
• De oorlog van de kleine paardjes (1975) - This means The war of the little horses.
• Er zijn geen echte gekken meer op Capri (1976) - This means Really crazy people no longer exist at Capri Island.
• Gringo: een reis naar het Paraguay van 1922 (1976) - This means Gringo: A Voyage to the Paraguay of 1922.
• De schreeuw van de witte kakatoe (1978)
• Als vogelen uit de hemel...: nacht over Java (1980) - This means Like birds from heaven ...: night over Java.
• De bruiden in het bad en andere duistere daden (1981) - This means The bride in the bath and other dark deeds.