Raoul de Jong on Colonialism, Identity and Jaguarman

Raoul de Jong is a Dutch novelist and a prominent voice in a new narrative about colonialism. De Jong discusses the history behind his novel 'Jaguarman'  (published by HopeRoad), in which he seeks to rewrite his relationship with this absent father and an absent heritage. Breaking away from traditional representations of colonial heritage, the novel blends memoir, fiction, and historical research into letters addressed to the mysterious jaguar man.

Raoul de Jong visited Sheffield and London to launch the English translation of his novel by John Eyck. De Jong's visit was part of the AHRC research project 'Beyond the National Narrative' and supported by the Dutch Language Union (Taalunie).

Raoul de Jong (1984) published eight books and wrote columns for multiple newspapers. His book Jaguarman, which was published in 2020, was nominated for the Libris Literature Prize, the European Union Prize for Literature, the Boekenbon Literature Prize, the Boon and the E. du Perron Prize. In 2022, he received the Anna Blaman Prize for his entire oeuvre. In 2023, Raoul wrote the Dutch National Bookweek Essay Boto Banja, which entered the bestseller lists at number 1. His work is translated into German, French and English.