Dutched Up! Book Review: Jo Parfitt, She Say Yes!

It's always a bit nerve wracking when you ask someone you respect to review a book. It's always a bit of a gamble when you ask someone who is a bit of a celebrity in the expat writing world to take a look at an expat anthology and then give her honest opinion. But that's what happened recently when Olga of The European Mama asked Jo Parfitt to take a peek at the Dutched Up! book.

And it's a bit like waiting for the man from Del Monte......




Luckily Jo Parfitt, she say yes too!

"I loved it. I devoured every story. They were compelling, well-written and entertaining."

Jo has more than thirty books to her name and is one of the Summertime Publishing team members. She provided me with the springboard I needed to follow my passion to become a writer when I attended one of her workshops in a beautiful farmhouse in Voorschoten many years ago - the rest, as they say, is history. And as it was with Jo that my writing career started, I felt particularly honoured to also get a mention in the review.

"I'm a grumpy and cynical old goat, jaded too, from reviewing too many mediocre books, but this one, I promise you, is a goodie."

Jo Parfitt, Dutched Up! Review

So, if you have not yet got your hands on your own copy of Dutched Up! it's really time you did. Seriously. Don't take my word for it...... read what Jo has to say over on Summertime Publishing.


 

Dutched Up! is also available on Book Depository!

Amsterdam Mamas 'Dutched Up! Rocking the Clogs Expat Style' Book Review

I am chuffed to bits that Amsterdam Mamas has published a review of our expat anthology about expat life in the Netherlands, "Dutched Up! Rocking the Clogs Expat Style".

I am even more chuffed to bits that it's the type of review that makes an author feel warm and squidgy inside.

And the icing on the cake is that my piece about welcoming kraamzorg into my home was something that Robyn Grafton, who reviewed the book, could relate to.

"..... and sentimental tears of happiness over a description of the kraamzorg service, reminding me about my first week of motherhood and my own amazing kraamverzorgster. By the time I turned over the last page, I felt I had just been enjoying a kopje koffee with some girlfriends, swapping stories about our lives in the Netherlands. Can a book feel gezellig? Zeker weten!"

So without further ado, head on over to Amsterdam Mamas and read Dutched Up! Book Review in its entirety for yourself......... and then buy the book!


               

Bill Bryson's The Road to Little Dribbling: Book Review:

In his latest book, Mr Bryson works his way around Britain to see just how these isles have fared since his adventure twenty years ago when he penned Notes from a Small Island.

The Expat Activity Book by Jodi Harris - A Book Review

Twenty personal development exercises to get you thinking about the challenges, the growth moments, the gifts and the things you lose when you choose an expat life. That's what Jodi Harris's expat activity book (Amazon US link) is about in a nutshell.

Amazon UK Link

From 'The Hello Checklist' at the front of the book to 'The Goodbye Checklist' at the back, Jodi (World Tree Coaching) guides you through activities designed to get you thinking about who you are and how you can be your best self as an expat. 

The first exercise is designed to help expats plan for settling into a new home, whilst the second is a means of visualising how a new adventure will look. They are exercises specifically for expats making a transition. They are the kind of activities that would certainly provide me with support and direction if I was planning an international relocation. 

However, I'm not. At least not yet.

Tales from the Expat Harem - Book Review

I believe that a book that transports you to another place is the most rewarding read you can get. A book that allows you to experience a different culture or unknown feeling from the comfort of your easy chair, bed or garden, or even the less comfortable perch in the smallest room in the house, is one to rave about.

Reading Tales from the Expat Harem: Foreign Women in Modern Turkey (Seal Women's Travel) (UK link - for US link see Amazon picture below) will make you feel like you have experienced a little of life in Turkey. It is nearly three hundred pages of expat women telling their tales about life in a country that bridges east and west, that even within its own borders joins the modern and the traditional.

Komt Een Vrouw bij de Dokter / Love Life by Kluun: Book review

As I crept into bed sniffing and snottering my husband asked,

"Finished your book then?"

Yes I had. I had just turned the final page over of 'Komt een Vrouw bij de Dokter' written by Kluun (aka Raymond van de Klundert). This is Kluun's debut novel written in 2003 and is dramatised from events in his own life.

It's a funny thing to enjoy a book which evokes gut wrenching tears but enjoy it I did. Well, when I say enjoy... I mean I found it hard to put down, I emphasised with the characters and I experienced their pain. That's what a good book should do right - put you into someone else's world?

When I woke the next morning I had puffed up red eyes and I was glad the book was finished. The Dutch presenter Myrna Goossen sums this book up perfectly, "Man, man, wat een heftig book."

Komt een vrouw bij de doktor is a book about Stijn and Carmen living in Amsterdam in the prime of their life, both running their own companies, enjoying the night life of the Dutch capital city, surrounded by success and friends. Until they are struck by breast cancer.

This book is their journey through cancer, about how it rips at the heart of their family and confronts their close friends. It is written from the perspective of Stijn, a fun loving, philandering, emotionally challenged husband, as he faces up to the reality that his wife is terminally ill. There'll be moments in the book where you'll want to hurt him. He behaves, as the Dutch would say, like a klootzak.

It is a book about preparing for the end of a life, an ode to love and the strength of family. The book is a roller coaster of emotion from anger at the medical establishment, to hope brought by treatment options, desperation as the effects of chemo take hold, to the final realisation that Carmen won't see their young daughter Luna grow up. It is a heart wrenching read, and all the more because it is based on real events.

Be prepared for humour and tears.

For those who relish the challenge of a good read in Dutch the book is available from Bol.com or any other local bookstore. If you'd prefer to read the book in English it's available under the title Love Life by Ray Kluun. It has also been made into a very successful film starring Carice van Houten, Barry Atsma and Pierre Bokma.

A book sequel entitled "Widower" is also available (though I am yet to read it but it is on my reading list for sure).

5 Reasons We Love the Lost My Name Books: A Review and A Giveaway

Lost My Name is a wonderful gift book concept for children and the good news is that the company has just arrived in the Netherlands. Three 'Lost My Name' books dropped on our doormat** last week, two in English (The Little Girl/Boy Who Lost Her/His Name) and one in Dutch (Wat een Pech, Mijn Naam is Weg). We were not disappointed!

Here are 5 reasons we love the latest additions to our bookshelves.

1. The order process was easy. 

Very easy. Often with personalised books there is a list of questions that parents have to puzzle over and within a week of getting the book the information is out of date  (eg who is your child's best friend? What is their favourite colour?). This is not the case with the Lost My Name Books. You simply type in your child's name, click whether they are a boy or a girl and then specify which language you would like the book in. That's it*. What's more is that you can see exactly how the book will look before you confirm the order.

*And your address details and the slight matter of payment of course. Oh, and postage costs are nil. Nothing. Nada.

2. The story is mesmerising

In short a child awakes to find their name gone from their bedroom door. The story that unfolds through the book is the quest to find the letters that make up their name. And it is done in an enchanting way meeting all sorts of wonderful magical animals and creatures.

My 5-year-old son really enjoyed reeling through the letters we already had, and telling me which letters he still needed to complete his name. It was so lovely to see him pulled in to the story!


3. Each book is unique

Because the story is focussed on collecting the letters of a child's name each book is unique. Each of my sons (3, 5 and 8) have a Lost My Name book, and because we wisely named each of our children differently, each of their books is different which makes them feel pretty special!

In fact the books are so unique that you could order one in English and one in Dutch for the same child and they would be completely different stories.

Whilst reading the English version with my eldest son he posed an interesting question about how the book would be with my name, given how I have three 'A's in my name. Would I meet the same animal three times to collect 'A's?  I checked it out and the short answer is no I wouldn't. Three different creatures.

4. The illustrations are beautiful

Gorgeous in fact. I love the illustrations in the books, and so do my sons. I can't say anything else except how beautifully illustrated these books are. Stunningly beautiful. Even my artistic husband was highly impressed by the images in these books.

5. Fabulous quality

The books themselves are of a top notch quality - proper durable pages that will stand the test of daily bedtime reading.

Some additional random thoughts and observations

The 'Lost My Name' website states the target audience of the books at between 2 to 6 years but it certainly wasn't too babyish for my 8 year old (in English which is his second language) and personally I think this book makes a beautiful kraamkado.

The book is available in English (UK and US), Dutch, German, Italian, Spanish, French.

And one more thing - last but absolutely not least -

I have one personalised book to giveaway - and a discount of 15% for ten other readers. 

All you have to do is tell me underneath (and enter your details in Rafflecopter*) in the comments how you came up with the name for your child. I want to hear the funny, heartwarming and bizarre ways you came up with names. I would love to read about the near miss stories of how your child almost ended up with a name you would have regretted later. I want to hear the tales of how your child remained nameless for days, weeks, months (ok maybe just days) because you couldn't agree on a name. Were there dual language issues to consider? How did you finally decide on a name for your children?

In our case I loved the Dutch name Joost but my husband had previously had a dog called the same so had a strange association with the name. Furthermore, we worried about how the name Joost would be butchered by my British family and friends. In Dutch the 'J' is a soft 'J' and pronounced as a 'Y'. The double 'OO' is more an 'O' sound (but slightly longer) than the English 'OO' found in boot for example. In Britain I'm sure our son would have ended up being called Juiced. And that didn't appeal........ So Joost was scrapped.

So over to you........

a Rafflecopter giveaway


*Rafflecopter will not be used to randomly pick a winner but will facilitate contacting the chosen winners.

** Lost my Name approached me to review their books to coincide with their launch onto the Dutch market. Three books were provided to me at no cost. Aside from the free books I get no compensation for any sales made or by hosting this competition. All opinions are my own and because the books are so lovely I agreed to a giveaway. And that is the end of the small print....

Book Review: Pixie's New Home

Pixie's New Home, written by Emmanuelle Payot Karpathakis and published by Summertime Publishing, is aimed at children between the ages of three and five who are moving to a new home.

Pixie is a donkey who learns that she will leave behind her friend Lila to move to a garden where the grass is greener. At first Pixie is curious about the adventure that lies ahead of her but is then sad at what she will lose. However, she is quickly comfortable in her new environment and makes a new friend, but keeps her old friend in her heart.

The story is short and simple and allows children to follow the emotional stages of a relocation in language they understand. It also sends them the message that it is okay to be sad when they move to a new place.

Furthermore the book is beautifully illustrated in striking colours that is sure to captivate any little globetrotter. At the end of the story there is a colouring page and space for a child to draw their current home and how they imagine their new home will look.

The author has lived in five different countries and has four children of her own as well as being a relocation coach - all factors that qualify her to write this wonderful little story to help young children wrap their heads around the idea of moving.

Pixie's New Home is a great resource to get parents and children talking about relocation and to explain to small children that they will make new friends and adapt to their new home.