Sjoerd Kuyper facts for kids

Sjoerd Kuyper (born March 6, 1952, in Amsterdam) is a Dutch poet and author. He writes for adults, children, and young adult literature. He also works in theatre, TV series, movies, and writes lyrics.

Some of his most famous works include the film The Pocket-knife (Het Zakmes), a series of books about a toddler named Robin, the poem Mensen met koffers (People with Suitcases), the song Hallo wereld (Hello World), and the youth novels Hotel De Grote L (The Big L Hotel) and Bizar (Bizarre). His books have been published in fifteen countries. He has won many awards, including six Zilveren Griffels and a Gouden Griffel for Robin en God (Robin and God). In 2012, he received the Theo Thijssen Prijs for all his work. In 2014, he was honored as an Officer in the Orde van Oranje-Nassau for his important contributions to Dutch literature both in the Netherlands and abroad.

Early Life and First Writings

Growing Up in the Netherlands

Sjoerd Kuyper was born on March 6, 1952, in Amsterdam. When he was two years old, his family moved to Berkhout, a small town near Hoorn. His father became a teacher there. Sjoerd later wrote about his seven years in Berkhout in his popular books about the toddler Robin. In 1956, his sister Trudy was born.

In 1961, his family moved again, this time to Oostvoorne. A year later, on Sjoerd's tenth birthday, his brother Hans was born. In Oostvoorne, when Sjoerd was thirteen, he started writing stories. He was inspired by the adventure books of Jules Verne. He also began writing poetry. He went to high school in Brielle and wrote for the school newspaper, where he was also an editor.

Teenage Years and Early Publications

In 1967, Sjoerd's family moved to Winkel, North Holland. He continued high school in Schagen. In Winkel, he and his friends started their own small publishing house called Walpurgisnacht. They made their own books using stencils. During this time, Sjoerd had a story published in a local newspaper and a poem in a national magazine. One of his poems from the school newspaper was even included in a national book for teenagers. He also wrote a song called "De NAVO Blues" (The NATO Blues), which he sang on a TV show with his friends. In 1969, he finished high school and moved to Amsterdam to study philosophy.

In Amsterdam, he met other young poets. Together, they started another publishing group called Fizz-Subvers Press. They first published their own poems, but later also works by other well-known writers. On July 11, 1970, Sjoerd met Margje Burger at a pop concert where he was reading poetry. They have been together ever since.

Becoming a Full-Time Writer

First Book and New Adventures

Sjoerd and Margje moved into a small summer house. Sjoerd continued his studies in Amsterdam and published poems in smaller magazines. His big break came when a famous poet, Hans Verhagen, helped him get his poems published by a major publisher, De Bezige Bij. His first collection of poems, Ik herinner mij Klaas Kristiaan (I Remember Klaas Kristiaan), came out in 1974. Sjoerd became involved with the publishing company, helping to organize poetry readings. In the same year, he read his poems at an international poetry festival.

He decided to stop his studies and become a full-time writer. He wrote articles and book reviews for different newspapers and magazines. He also translated books and wrote his first stories for children for a radio programme. In 1975, he and Margje moved onto a houseboat.

TV Shows and Collaborations

In 1978, Sjoerd wrote his first TV series, De Grote Klok (The Big Clock). He also traveled with Margje, who was a photographer, to places like the Aran Islands and New York City, writing reports for a magazine. In 1980, Sjoerd and Margje spent four months in the United States, meeting writers from all over the world.

That same year, Sjoerd and his sister Trudy started a publishing house called Bobbelie. Trudy was famous for her puppet theater, and they began publishing her puppet shows as books. Sjoerd continued to publish his own poetry and prose books with De Bezige Bij.

He also did many interviews with other writers, which were published in newspapers and later in books. He even wrote a youth novel, De verborgen steeg (The Hidden Alley), with his friend Johan Diepstraten. This book won many awards from children's juries.

Family Life and The Pocket-knife

Margje and Sjoerd got married in 1976. They had a son in 1984 and a daughter in 1986. Margje stopped photography and started drawing and painting. Sjoerd began to focus more on writing for puppet theaters and on children's books. He started publishing with Leopold in 1988.

He wrote for several TV programs, including Max Laadvermogen (Max Load Capacity) and De freules (Her Ladyships). In 1991, he wrote the TV series and film Het zakmes (The Pocket-knife). This was based on a book he had published earlier. The film and series won fourteen awards, including an Emmy Award. The film is now considered a classic in Dutch cinema. The book was reprinted many times.

Success in the Nineties

Robin Books and The Red Swan

In 1988, Sjoerd, Margje, and their children moved to Bakkum. Sjoerd focused on writing books and giving lectures at schools and libraries.

In 1990, he published Robins zomer (Robin's Summer). This was the first book in a series about his own childhood in Berkhout. He also included stories and sayings from his own children. Eight more books about Robin followed. Three of these won a Zilveren Griffel award, and one won a Gouden Griffel. In 1996, he published De rode zwaan (The Red Swan), a philosophical children's novel inspired by the forests around his home. This book was later made into a film, and Sjoerd wrote the movie script.

International Journeys

In 1994, Sjoerd was invited to Curaçao and Bonaire for children's book weeks. He later visited Aruba and Suriname. These trips had a big impact on him. He said that he felt like a "different person, a better person" when he was there. Later, he wrote books about the children of these islands. In 1998, he created the picture book Malmok with Annemarie van Haeringen, about a pelican. This book won a Gouden Penseel award and was published in English, Papiamentu, and Papiamento for the Antilles.

In 1997, his family bought a house in Bergen. Sjoerd wrote letters about their move, which were later collected in a book. In 2000, he was asked to write the Dutch children's book week gift, Eiber!. Three hundred thousand copies of this book were printed and given away.

New Projects in the 2000s

Musicals and Collaborations with Margje

In 2003, director Peter de Baan asked Sjoerd to write songs for the musical De scheepsjongens van Bontekoe (Java Ho!). Over the next ten years, Sjoerd contributed to eleven musicals, writing songs and scripts. He wrote lyrics for the musical Turks fruit (Turkish Delight) in 2005 and co-wrote Dromen zijn bedrog (Dreams Don't Come True) in 2009. For these musicals, Sjoerd won two John Kraaijkamp Musical Awards.

During this time, Margje and Sjoerd started writing together. Their first joint project was the picture book Jij bent mijn mama niet! (You're Not My Mom!) in 2004. They also wrote many stories for school textbooks. More picture books followed, like Sjim and Sjon eten gek (Jim and John Eat Funny) and Kom uit die boom (Get Out of That Tree). They also wrote stories inspired by famous paintings for books like The Big Rijksmuseum Reading Book and Rembrandt's Bible Stories.

Personal Reflections and Challenges

Sjoerd's father passed away in 2006. Sjoerd wrote about this in his collection September (2009) and performed a musical play about it called Dode vaders, lieve zonen (Dead Fathers, Dear Sons). During this period, he won two more Zilveren Griffels. However, his book sales started to go down. He spoke out about problems in the world of children's books, which led to him changing publishers.

The 2010s and Big Successes

New Publishers and Film Adaptations

In 2009, Sjoerd's book Josje was reprinted due to popular demand. In 2011, Lemniscaat Publishers released Mijn opa de bankrover (My Grandfather the Bank Robber). A film based on this story came out the same year and was very popular, with 150,000 people watching it. Also in 2011, Lemniscaat published the last book in the Robin series, O rode papaver, boem pats knal (O Red Poppy, Boom Pats Pop!), which earned Sjoerd his fifth Zilveren Griffel.

Deepening Connection to the Caribbean

Sjoerd's connection to Curaçao and Aruba grew stronger. He helped a writer named Ròi Colastica write his first youth novel. Sjoerd wrote about this experience in his book Kwaaie verhalen van liefde (Angry Stories of Love). Ròi's book, Vuurwerk in mijn hoofd (Fireworks in My Head), was published in 2012. Through his conversations with Ròi and his family, Sjoerd learned a lot about Curaçao. This helped him write De duik (The Dive) in 2014, a book about children on the island. Ròi later said it was amazing that a Dutch writer could capture the island's spirit so well. In 2017, Sjoerd wrote Aruba's children's book week gift, Het spannendste boek van de wereld (The Most Thrilling Book in the World), which was given to schoolchildren in both Papiamento and Dutch.

Hotel De Grote L and Awards

In 2014, Sjoerd published several books, including Mama Lief Alsjeblieft (For You, Dear Mama), which he wrote with Margje, and Hotel De Grote L (The Big L Hotel). Sjoerd celebrated his fortieth year as a writer with speeches and performances. At this event, he was honored as an Officer in the Orde van Oranje-Nassau. Hotel De Grote L became his biggest success. It was made into a film and adapted for the stage twice. Over forty thousand copies were sold in the Netherlands, and it was published in ten other countries. Sjoerd still travels to Italy every year to give lectures about the book.

In 2018, Sjoerd changed publishers again. He now publishes his books for both young people and adults with Hoogland & Van Klaveren. In March 2019, his youth novel Bizar (Bizarre) was released.

Standing Up for What's Right

Social Issues in His Work

Sjoerd Kuyper comes from a family with strong beliefs in fairness and equality. This shows in his writing, which often has a poetic style but also deals with important social issues. He wrote a poem about peace early in his career and a song about NATO that he sang on TV. His anger about unfairness has never gone away. He uses his work to speak out, much like other famous children's authors.

Education and Refugees

In the early 1990s, many schools were combined into larger ones, which was supposed to improve quality but often led to cutbacks. Sjoerd spoke out against this, especially when his children's small school was threatened with closure. He wrote about these experiences with politics in his book De schoolstrijd (The School Struggle).

In 1994, he was asked to write a TV series about refugees and the fairy tales they brought from their home countries. The title song he wrote for this series, Mensen met koffers (People with Suitcases), became very popular years later. It was shared thousands of times online when discussions about refugees in the Netherlands became heated. In 2012, he co-wrote the song Hallo wereld (Hello World) for a children's choir, which has been watched and listened to millions of times on YouTube.

The Sinterklaas Debate

Sjoerd also got involved in the discussion about Zwarte Piet (Black Pete) in the Netherlands. Inspired by his grandchildren, who are partly Surinamese, he wrote a book called De vrienden van Sinterklaas (The Friends of Sinterklaas) in 2014. This book suggested that the Sinterklaas celebration could be fun for everyone, with different colored 'pieten'. This brought him into the national debate. He also wrote other books on the topic, like Het kleinste Pietje (The Smallest Pietje) and Het verhaal van Sinterklaas (The Story of Sinterklaas). He also created a Sinterklaas song called Al die kleuren (All Those Colors). Sjoerd believes that the idea of different colored 'pieten' will eventually win, even if not everyone agrees yet. After this, Sjoerd focused his social commitment more on his books, like De duik and Bizar.

List of Works

Literature

• Het Zakmes (1981)
• De Rode Zwaan (1996)

Film

• The Pocket-knife (Het Zakmes, 1992) (screenplay)
• De Rode Zwaan (1999) (screenplay)
• Morrison krijgt een zusje (2008) (screenplay)