Novelist and essayist Daniël Rovers has currently taken up residence in Amsterdam. However, his literature echo of spaces he’s previously crossed or imagined: his debut novel, Elf (Eleven, 2010), is set against the urban vibrations of Brussels, the city where he obtained his doctorate at The Free University, and his latest work of fiction, De Waren (The true ones, 2017), is set in Nijmegen where he studied philosophy. The former contains schwob-like biographical sketches of ordinary lives and the latter is an exploration of truth, love and true love; tracing expressions, postures, feelings, thoughts, troubles – in short, the lives – of three former friends through subtle flashes in time.