Our Narrow Hiding Places, Ecco (2024)
Preorder now! On sale — 8/13/2024
For fans of All the Light We Cannot See and The Nightingale: an elderly woman recounts her Dutch family’s survival during the final years of Nazi occupation, shedding new light on old secrets that rippled through subsequent generations.
Our Narrow Hiding Places is a sweeping story of survival and of the terrible cost of war—and a reminder that sometimes the traumas we inherit come along with a resilience we never imagined.
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"A magnificent anthem to the magic of survival in all its forms." — Clare Beams, author of The Illness Lesson and The Garden
“A luminous and gorgeously written story that explores the power and complexity of memory.” — Andrew Porter, author of The Disappeared
“A vivid, devastating account of Holland's Hunger Winter and a complex, compassionate tale of human resilience.” — Alice McDermott, author of Absolution and The Ninth Hour
"Jansma masterfully weaves past and present to show us how trauma swims down bloodlines as do the folktales and stories that remind us of where we come from and who we are. A breathtaking epic that reverberates with hope." — Tania James, author of Loot
"Kristopher Jansma is a writer at the peak of his powers and this novel is a triumph." — Adam Wilson, author of Sensation Machines
“Never losing hope as its focus, Our Narrow Hiding Places is evidence of the many meanings of survival, and how, even in the midst of chaos, our capacity for courage persists.” — Mateo Askaripour, author of Black Buck
"A hauntingly beautiful intergenerational novel, Our Narrow Hiding Places infuses the darkest of history with an aching, luminous sense of magic and mystery. An extraordinary achievement." — Dan Chaon, author of Sleepwalk
“Jansma shows the impact of generational trauma in one family. Book clubs and readers of World War II fiction will enjoy his perceptive take on survival, family, and starting over.” — Library Journal
“Jansma (Why We Came to the City) seamlessly interweaves past and present in this immersive dual narrative of a girl in German-occupied Holland during WWII and her American grandson. . . A satisfying blend of wartime and family drama.” — Publishers Weekly
Les Idéalistes, Le Cherche Midi (2022)
Preorder now! On sale in France, 11/03/2022
Available exclusively in French.
“An impressive novel of mastery, in the tradition of Tom Wolfe, which combines 100 years of American history and the story of an exceptional friendship.
One day of idleness, a young unemployed history teacher pushes the door of an ordinary office... and sees his life change forever. In a few moments, he goes from apathy to passion, from hesitation to risk, from timidity to flamboyance. In this soulless room is indeed Waldo Woodson, the speech manager of Congresswoman Teddy Ruiz. Cultivated, unpredictable, fascinating, Woodson irremediably upsets the rules of the game, and always demands more from existence at the risk of losing his health - but never his time. Together, they write the speeches and weave a friendship made up of admiration and rivalry.
But Waldo Woodson's confidence conceals flaws, disappointments and a secret that painstakingly eat away at his energy and turn his formidable talent into a double-edged sword. Of those that we turn against ourselves.
A broad and prodigiously constructed novel that combines the story of an exceptional friendship, love drama and political fiction. The author is in line with F. Scott Fitzgerald, Tom Wolfe and Joseph O'Neill who excel both in the analysis of society and in that of the intimacy of the characters.”
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The Unchangeable Spots of Leopards, Viking/Penguin (2013)
“As early as he can remember, the narrator of this remarkable novel has wanted to become a writer. From the jazz clubs of Manhattan to the villages of Sri Lanka, Kristopher Jansma’s hopelessly unreliable—yet hopelessly earnest—narrator will be haunted by the success of his greatest friend and literary rival, the brilliant Julian McGann, and endlessly enamored with Evelyn, the green-eyed girl who got away. A profound exploration of the nature of truth and storytelling, this delightful picaresque tale heralds Jansma as a bold, new American voice.”
2014 PEN/Hemingway Award, Honorable Mention
Barnes & Noble Discover Pick
American Booksellers Association “Indie Next” Pick
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Why We Came to the City, Viking/Penguin (2016)
Brooklyn Eagles Literary Prize, Longlist
Junior Library Guild Selection
“December, 2008. A heavy snowstorm is blowing through Manhattan and the economy is on the brink of collapse, but none of that matters to a handful of guests at a posh holiday party. Five years after their college graduation, the fiercely devoted friends at the heart of this richly absorbing novel remain as inseparable as ever: editor and social butterfly Sara Sherman, her troubled astronomer boyfriend George Murphy, loudmouth poet Jacob Blaumann, classics major turned investment banker William Cho, and Irene Richmond, an enchanting artist with an inscrutable past.”
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New York Odyssée, Rue Fromentin/Livre de Poche (2017)
New York Odyssée is the prize-winning French translation of Why We Came to the City by Sophie Troff
“Irene, Jacob, William, George et Sara, inséparables depuis l’université, viennent de s’installer à New York. Ils ont vingt-cinq ans, sillonnent la ville, naviguent entre fêtes et premiers jobs. Mais la maladie d’Irene bouleverse tout et donne une direction nouvelle à leur existence.
Avec New York Odyssée, Kristopher Jansma signe un magistral portrait de groupe avant de basculer vers le drame intime de chacun. Un roman ironique, juste et sensible sur le deuil et l’amitié.”
Prix des Lecteurs, Finalist
Prix du Livre de Voyage Urbain du Figaro, Winner
Grand Prix de Littérature Américaine, Long List
Prix America, Finalist
Prix du Livre Etranger France Inter-Journal du Dimanche, Finalist
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