The Safekeep, with Women’s Prize-winner Yael van der Wouden
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Welcome to Intelligence Squared, where great minds meet. I'm producer Mia Serenti. Today's guest is winner of the 2025 Women's Fiction Prize, Yale van der Vouden. Yale is the author of The Safekeep, a work of historical fiction which follows two women who reach boiling point over the course of a sweltering summer. The novel was shortlisted for the Booker Prize in 2024 and won the Women's Fiction Prize this summer.
Yale sat down with journalist and book critic Maithalie Rao to discuss the intricacies of writing a tale of desire, histories and homes, and the unexpected shape of revenge. Let's join Maithali now with more. Welcome to Intelligence Squared, I'm Maitalie Rao. Our guest today is Yale von der Bauden. Yale lives and works in the Netherlands, where she lectures in creative writing and comparative literature.
She's the author of The Safekeep, which won the 2025 Women's Prize for Fiction and was shortlisted for the Booker Prize. The Safe Keep is that rare thing, a masterful blend of history, suspense, and historical authenticity, a classic in the making. That's what Kit DeWall, the chair of the Women's Prize judging panel, had to say about the book when she awarded the prize. I thoroughly enjoyed the book. We have so much to talk about.
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