Gerard Kornelis van het Reve (Amsterdam, 1923-Zulte, Belgium, 2006), a classic of modern Dutch literature, is a writer who is very difficult to classify. The strength of his convictions, his constant humor, often sardonic, and the unorthodox nature of his positions in multiple fields made him an uncomfortable presence, as well as a voice received with enthusiasm by the young generations since the appearance of his first work, The Nights, in 1947. He received multiple distinctions, including the Reina Prinsen Geerligsprijs in 1947, the P. C. Hooft Prize in 1968 and the Dutch Literature Prize in 2001. Photograph of the author by Joost Evers ( Nationaal Archief).