Kafka said a good book is like an axe able to break the ice in our frozen inner self. Can we have such great expectations of literature? Or does it mainly have restrictions? British author David Mitchell, who had a breakthrough with his latest book The Thousand Autumns of Jacob de Zoet with the Dutch audience at large, in his lecture examines issues like literature, history and expectations, thereby setting the tone for the Friday night of the festival. Bas Heijne talks to him after his lecture. English spoken.

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