A literary translator is set to visit Haworth to discuss the art of bringing a Dutch novel rooted in the Brontës' world back to Yorkshire.
David McKay will speak at the Brontë Parsonage Museum on Wednesday, October 7, as part of an event exploring the translation of The Song of Stork and Dromedary, an award-winning novel by Dutch author Anjet Daanje.
The event 'Bringing the Brontës Home with David McKay' will take place at 6pm in the Brontë Event Space in the Old School Room.
Tickets are priced at £8.
Dutch Flag (Image: Pixabay)
Brontë-inspired story captivates readers
The novel, widely acclaimed in the Netherlands and described by some critics as "the best Dutch novel of the century," is inspired by the life and legacy of Emily Brontë.
It follows Eliza May Drayden, a fictionalised version of Emily Brontë, whose controversial novel Haeger Mass is initially condemned as immoral before being recognised as a masterpiece.
Told through 11 interconnected chapters, the story unfolds through letters, notebooks, biographies and the accounts of individuals whose lives intersect with Drayden’s across generations.
The novel explores themes of love, loss, memory and storytelling, arguing that stories can preserve human experience long after death.
Much of the narrative takes place in Bridge Fowling, a fictional stand-in for Haworth, placing the Brontë sisters’ world at the heart of the story.
Branwell portrait of the Brontes (Image: Martin Greenwood)
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Challenge of bringing the novel home
For Mr McKay, translating the novel into English posed a unique challenge.
While translating the book into English, he had to consider how a story written by a Dutch author for a Dutch readership could be brought back to the landscapes, culture and literary traditions that inspired it.
Bronte Parsonage (Image: submitted)
His research led him to Haworth, the surrounding moors and the Brontë Parsonage Museum, helping him reconnect the novel with the setting that lies behind much of its imagination.
Mr McKay is an award-winning translator of Dutch fiction and non-fiction.
Ms Daanje is known for her novels, short stories and screenplays, and her work The Remembered Soldier was longlisted for the International Booker Prize in 2026.
The event forms part of the New Dutch Writing programme, supported by the Dutch Foundation for Literature.