Annie Foore (1847–1890)

Annie Foore was the pen name of Francisca Johanna Jacoba Alberta IJzerman-Junius, born in Tiel, in The Netherlands to the large family of Anna Maria Titia and Dr. Franciscus Johannes Jacobus Albertus Junius, a Dutch Reformed pastor. Her younger sister Sophie also became a writer under the pseudonym Johanna van Woude. Annie made her debut in 1869 with the short story published in the literary magazine Nederland. She published her debut novel, A Family Secret, in 1871. She became known to a wider audience the following year with her novella Florence's Dream. In 1873, Annie married Jan Willem IJzerman, an engineer, and moved with him to the Dutch East Indies (present-day Indonesia) where he worked in railway construction. There she had four children and wrote stories and novels about colonial society from a female perspective. In her works, ideals about love and motherhood constantly collide with the harsh colonial reality in which the prestige, ambitions, and career prospects of men predominate. She died at age 43 in 1890, and her work fell into obscurity for many years. However, in the late 20th century, her name began to appear more and more often in literary circles. In 2009, her novel Bogoriana was re-published.