ABOUT
THE BOOK

Two young oarsmen are trained as a coxless pair by a mysterious German coach in the golden summer of pre-war Amsterdam. Through the pressure and rapture of physical exertion, teamwork and victory, Anton the shy outsider and calmly self-confident David forge an intense relationship. But on the wintry eve of Holland’s liberation, Anton stands on the bank of his beloved river and mourns a lost world: David has disappeared during the Nazi occupation and the boathouse is now derelict and deserted…