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The reader will find a brief presentation of the books from the Sigmatau Editions 2024-2026 catalog on this page. For each book, the following information is available:
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Detailed explanation / back cover text of the book
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Technical details
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Fiction: minimum 30 pages in English, other languages possible upon request via 2MIE
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Non-fiction: minimum 15 pages in English, other languages possible upon request via 2MIE
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Information about the author or authors
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If you're interested in learning more about one or more titles, please send an email to annemie.reyntjens@sigmatau.be or contact@sigmatau.be.
FICTION
'99'
Touching novel about the love affair between Amedeo Modigliani and his beloved Jeanne Hébuterne, who commits suicide one day after his death. The painter had previously suggested that he would still like to 'enjoy the company of his muse’ even after his death... A major role is reserved for Paris, especially the Père-Lachaise Cemetery (where both now rest in the same grave), spiritualism, and the magical power of the number 99.
'Camille' 1+2
Novel + sequel starring Camille Claudel, who enters the Dépôt des Marbres in Paris in 1883, where Auguste Rodin's studio is located. Copies of his 'Thinker' appear all over Paris and the world is at his feet, but the famous master, 24 years older than Camille, is only interested in the fragile girl from Nogent-Sur-Seine. This marks the beginning of a toxic relationship that will have dramatic consequences for the brilliant sculptress.
'Dedo'
Novel about the final chapter in the life of Amedeo Modigliani (1906-1920), known as 'Dedo' to his friends. Modigliani battles his demons: he is an Italian in exile, he is Jewish, addicted to alcohol and drugs, and as a tuberculosis patient condemned to an early death. Set in belle époque Paris, with extensive supporting roles for a number of well-known figures, from Pablo Picasso to six-year-old Simone de Beauvoir.
'Hate'
An exciting novel floating between the interwar period, when refugee Albert Einstein seeks a new future in America boarding a Red Star Line ship in Antwerp, and modern times, when a jeweler is robbed and a shop girl dies under suspicious circumstances. At the Century Hotel in Antwerp, Einstein meets a person who inspires him to make an invention with significant consequences.
'The Hollywood Conspiracy'
A novel that could have been written by Nostradamus! The author, one of the most well-known film journalists in Europe, won the Debut Prize for a thriller in the Low Countries with this book. The story takes place in the early 2000s: the Hollywood bigwigs are tired of being blackmailed by actors and scriptwriters, and want to establish an alternative Hollywood in Europe. Brace yourself: every scene described, every star that makes an appearance, from Rod Stewart to Gina Lollobrigida – everything is based on true events.
'Wasted love in Vasto'
An unexpected inheritance brings Frenchman Michel Cardoni back to Italy, to the fantastic city of Vasto, gem on the Adriatic Sea where three millennia of history intersect on every corner. Michel is searching for his roots and finds the love of his life. Or maybe he doesn’t? By the way, what do you think – would this handsome young man have gotten off the train at his former hometown station if he had known what awaited him?
'Nicola'
'I did it with a pair of scissors.’ Thus begins this controversial novel floating between fiction and non-fiction. The young artist Nicola grows up near the marble quarries of Carrara and moves to Paris with his parents, where he restores monuments at the Père-Lachaise Cemetery. Nicola is highly gifted, like 3% of the Western population. A blessing for some, the sword of Damocles for many.
NON-FICTION
'The Camps'
The main compilation book about the Nazi concentration camps during World War II, as a historical correction to the legendary 'Book of Camps'. The 25 most important camps are extensively covered from various perspectives, from Auschwitz-Birkenau and Bergen-Belsen to Majdanek and Sobibor, from Dachau and Natzweiler-Struthof to Belzec, Dora, Ravensbrück, Sachsenhausen, and Treblinka.
'Abruzzo mon amour'
Many people love Italy, in particular Venice, Tuscany, or Rome, but when he filmed 'The American' there, George Clooney fell in love with the relatively unknown Abruzzo. This is the greenest region in Europe, the only place in the world where you can ski with a view of the sea, with untouched medieval villages and fantastic people. Abruzzo, 'forte e gentile': strong and kind, love at first sight.
'Costa deiTrabocchi'
A poetic and pictorial book about the most beautiful coastal stretch in Europe, the 'Costa dei Trabocchi' (UNESCO World Heritage Site) along the Adriatic Sea in Abruzzo, Italy. Here, fishing still happens as it did a hundred years ago (on the 'trabocchi'), and the Italian poet, journalist, and dandy Gabriele D'Annunzio, who gave his name to a street in almost every Italian city and whose writings are a recurring theme in the book, lost his heart.
'Camille& Mathias'
A groundbreaking biography by contemporary Mathias Morhardt about sculptress Camille Claudel, whose sculptures grip the viewer's soul. The biography has now been translated in English and other languages for the first time. The book also contains ten theme chapters and the presentation of her main works.
'Understanding
Italy'
Understanding why the 'Festa della Libertà' and the song 'Bella Ciao' are so important to Italians. Why they have a special bond with the Middle Ages. With Leonardo Da Vinci and Michelangelo too, with Berlusconi and Benetton, Gucci and Ferrari. The fascination with MILFs like Sophia Loren or Monica Bellucci. Chronic marital problems between 'su' and 'giù' (above and below, north and south). The urge to laugh at themselves. What the French just can't seem to grasp: that Mont Blanc is actually in Italy and is called 'Monte Bianco'. The annual ritual of 'passata'. The subjects of the 'prova di maturità' (in school) directly on television. The Sanremo Festival as the core of Italian DNA. Fellini's tricks and the secret to a good cappuccino. A book as a quest for the soul of Italy and the Italians.
'Heroes of the Holocaust'
111 Heroes of the Holocaust, equally as many touching stories never to be forgotten. Heart-wrenching stories about Jews, Gypsies, or political prisoners, about the resilience of the human soul. Stories about majestic individuals in hellish conditions, from Rubino Romeo Salmonì and Roberto Benigni ('Life is Beautiful') to Audrey Hepburn.
'The Secrets of
Père-Lachaise'
Bronze, marble, granite, and stone reign at the 'Cimetière du Père-Lachaise' in Paris, the world's most famous cemetery. Here, you walk through 200 years of European history. Jean-François Champollion, the decipherer of Egyptian hieroglyphs, is buried here, as well as Jim Morrison, the frontman of The Doors. Frédéric Chopin as well, Amedeo Modigliani and the girl he took with him in death, Sarah Bernhardt, Molière and La Fontaine, Oscar Wilde. Strange things also happen at Père-Lachaise. Tree roots push up tombstones and reveal truths. Spiritists meet with mediums whom ordinary people think are dead and buried. In the early morning, women undress and lie down, always in the same spot. Flowers are placed by mysterious visitors. The secrets of Père-Lachaise.
'The Paris of Picasso and Modigliani'
A book as a physical version of Woody Allen's 'Midnight in Paris'. The reader is invited on a fairytale-like stroll through the Paris of Pablo Picasso, Amedeo Modigliani, Ernest Hemingway, and Gertrude Stein. We walk through the dark corridors of the artist's den ‘Bateau Lavoir’ in Montmartre and eat a stew at 'Chez Rosalie'. A scuffle between drunks at 'Lapin Agile,' better get out of there quickly! We cross the Seine and gaze at the elegant crowd in the Jardin du Luxembourg, or on the crowded terrace of ‘Café de la Rotonde’ on Boulevard du Montparnasse. The Paris of the belle époque, a fairy tale on every page.
'War Women'
"It was as if we were suddenly released from a cage, all of us together." The First World War overturned the traditional roles between men and women. Women suddenly took on the work of men and assumed 'male' responsibilities. Hundreds of thousands of women were active on the front lines, including in the medical sector or as drivers. This groundbreaking book showcases strong women, from Maria Botchkareva and her 'Battalion of Death' to Dorothy Lawrence, who managed to enlist as a man in the British army, from the executed nurse Edith Cavell to Marie Curie, who saved the lives of tens of thousands of severely injured soldiers with her mobile X-ray units.
'Sex and Eroticism during WWI'
From a letter of a soldier from the 27th American Division to a superior officer: "I am worried about what is happening on the home front. A book has come out. Julie tells me that men and women have equal rights in bed. She also says that we won't have children if I come back from the war injured." The book in question was 'Married Love' by Marie Stopes, an exponent of the more liberated sexual morality that had been prevailing in Western society for some time and flourished during the Great War. This book does not shy away from any sensitive subject, including the 'gender switch' of the Dahomey people, the dubious role of the 'white feather girls,' or the erotic allure of the wounded soldier.
'The 33 Most Beautiful Train Stations in the World'
People find solace in train stations. Or work. Sometimes even love. Cultures converge there. Stations connect nations and are crucial in warfare. Architectural marvels have been realized in the construction of stations. This book traces the paths to the 33 most beautiful train stations in the world, from Tokyo Station Marunouchi Building (in Japan, the country of 24 billion train journeys per year!) and St. Pancras International in London to Luz Station in São Paulo or Sirkeci Terminal in Istanbul, from Milano Centrale and Grand Central Terminal in New York with its 44 platforms and 67 tracks, to the four stories of Antwerp Central, Dunedin Station in New Zealand, Atocha in Madrid, or China's Nanjing South.
'Women & Children during the Holocaust'
On March 12, 1943, the ten-year-old Jacqueline Morgenstern wrote a short essay during her French class at school about an encounter with a beggar. In it, she recounts how she gave the poor man a coin, even though she was afraid of him, because she thought that one day she might also need help herself. Two years later, the child was killed by an injection of tuberculosis in the Neuengamme concentration camp. The Holocaust claimed the lives of 2 million women and 1.5 million children. Women played a heroic role in the concentration camps and other places where the persecution of Jews was the daily reality, such as in the resistance or during rescue operations. Often, women, especially those with young children, were classified in the camps as 'unsuitable for labor' and treated even more brutally than men.
'Modigliani,
Life and Work'
A book about the life and art of Amedeo Modigliani, with a focus on his roots in Livorno and his many years in Paris. A comprehensive presentation in words and images of all the paintings and sculptures that can be confidently attributed to Modigliani.
'The Red Star Line and the 'Promised' Land'
Between 1873 and 1934, the ocean liners of the Red Star Line transported 2 million men, women, and children from Europe to America. The 'promised' land! Join the journey on the ship of sometimes false promises, alongside Golda Meir, Albert Einstein, Irving Berlin, and many others.
'Shift in Health'
Those who work in shifts face a daily assault on their biological clocks. Sleep deprivation, lack of exercise, and poor nutrition often have detrimental effects on mental health as well. Nutrition and diet specialist Yana Van Gastel provides workshops on nutrition and shift work, offering solutions for both companies and employees.
'The Ozempic Files'
Elon Musk, Amy Schumer, Khloë Kardashian, and a host of film and music stars turned to the weight loss drug Ozempic. Is this truly the solution to obesity and overweight, and by extension, to diabetes? Let's not forget: Ozempic was originally intended for diabetes patients. While we're on the subject, what are the consequences of losing weight without exercise? Are you essentially committing suicide by gaining kilos? A simple question: how much sugar is too much sugar? Professor of Medicine Luc Van Gaal, internationally recognized as an obesity and diabetology specialist, answers all these important questions and provides a wealth of useful tips.
'Sri Lanka Mon Amour'
First, the bad news. All problems related to global warming and the necessary green shift converge on one small island and an even smaller archipelago nearby. Sri Lanka, the 'Pearl of the Indian Ocean' southeast of India, the world's second-largest tea producer, abruptly banned the use of artificial fertilizers, flirting with bankruptcy as a result. With further global warming, the nearby Maldives will be the first country to disappear into the sea. The good news: Sri Lanka has it all. Breathtaking nature, pristine white beaches, pleasant temperatures year-round, Buddha temples in mythical locations, magical train journeys through plantations, rich colonial roots, and spectacular wildlife. In short, Sri Lanka Mon Amour!
'Theravada, the End
of Suffering'
Suffering and discontent have been present throughout history, but their end is possible. Theravada, the 'Buddhism of the South,' is increasingly finding its way into the Western world. 'Theravada' stands for the 'teachings of the elders,' the primary form of Buddhism that migrated from India to Sri Lanka over two millennia ago. With the guidance of local guides, this book leads you through routes of one or more days on this paradise island, visiting a multitude of magical and purifying sites, from the 'high temples' of Bandagiriya Hambantota to the foremost Buddhist location in the world, the 'Temple of the Tooth' in the fairy-tale city of Kandy, where a tooth of the cremated Gautama Buddha is preserved after being removed from his ashes and brought to Sri Lanka.
'White Cities'
In 1917, Irish war artist William Orpen wrote to his wife: "The whole country has been wiped out. Miles of nothing but shell holes, bodies, rifles, steel helmets, gas masks, and torn clothes, German and English, all and everyone white with mud." This horror has now given way to magnificent cemeteries, the most beautiful of which are presented in this book, along with poignant stories of the soldiers buried there. The Commonwealth War Graves Commission, a world leader in gardening innovations, maintains 23,000 war commemoration sites in 150 countries, including more than 2,000 cemeteries. The largest is Tyne Cot Cemetery in Ypres, Belgium, with 11,961 graves. The smallest, Ocracoke Island (British) Cemetery in North Carolina, USA, has four.
CONTACT US
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Belgium
+32(0) 496 86 84 52
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