"Across the Border" - Ragdy van der Hoek

The book describes how daily life, the economy, and culture in the border region have been shaped by the presence of the national border. The main themes covered are:

• Smuggling (Sjoekele): An absolute key theme in this region. Especially in the periods after the First and Second World Wars, smuggling was not a criminal activity for many border residents, but a bitter necessity for survival. Coffee, butter, gin, cigarettes, and textiles crossed the border illegally via clandestine routes through the forests.

• Border Surveillance and Customs: The book highlights the cat-and-mouse game between smugglers and customs officers (kommiezen).

• International Cooperation and Tensions: How the relations between neighbors changed during key historical moments, such as the First World War (when the Netherlands was neutral and Germany was not), the interwar period, the occupation, and the eventual