Hope in Fearful Times, illustrated by Aad Goudappel and offered through Managementboek, relies heavily on the past for its concept and design but is most definitely a book for our times. It is laid out in the form of an Emblematum liber or book of meditations, which was common in Europe from the sixteenth to the eighteenth centuries. Each emblema consisted of three parts; a motto, an image (pictura), and a caption (subscriptio.) The reader must combine these three to understand the purpose of the emblem. Topics range from education, politics, religion, to love. The contents of Hope in Fearful Times is more like a philosophical notebook for 21 century life and work.
Aad told us, “In tradition of dictionaries, which originally passed along more information and insight than just the explanation of a word, this book gives answers (In sixty short chapters, based on words beginning with A to Z) to the dilemmas and disruptions of our times, their impact on the world in which we live, but also on ourselves. There are many references to history and art throughout the book, challenging the reader to think and reflect. In the execution, I searched for inspiration in the engravings in the ancient dictionaries. By doing so, the conceptual images in conjunction with the text, form a modern equivalent to the Emblata.”