Why I Want To Read More Dutch Literature

For those of you who don't know, I'm Dutch. I was born and raised in The Netherlands, and I love it here. But I do have a confession to make: I haven't read any Dutch books, except for the ones in school, for years. And I want to change that.

When I was younger (read: 10 or so) I was a very avid reader. I visited the library each week, and I brought the maximum number of books home every week. (I'm still surprised that I hadn't read every single book in that place.) All of those books were Dutch, and I loved it.

Then, when I got older and started going to high school, the Dutch books started getting harder and harder to read. Especially because school didn't allow me to read Dutch YA books anymore, but only 'real adult' books. The thing about Dutch literature is that in books, they use a lot of words (especially old words) that I had never heard of before. I found myself Googling words at least every chapter because I just didn't know what the words meant. And this was my own language! And besides that, most Dutch literature is about World War 2, and while this is an important subject, after a while I was kind of done with it. These things made me eventually stop reading Dutch books.

When I was 14 I started reading English books, and to my surprise I liked it a lot more than those Dutch books. It was so much easier than Dutch; I didn't have to Google as many words anymore, and I was allowed to read YA again. I fell in love with English books, and I never went back.

Now I'm 19 and I still only read English books, and basically everything I do is in English. I watch English TV-shows, I blog in English, all of my social media is in English, etc. I kind of regret this. Why? Because my Dutch SUCKS. I often find myself struggling to find a word in Dutch, because my head only knows it in English. Or I just straight up translate a saying in English directly to Dutch, which is just ridiculous. I want to be fluent in my own language again, and I think books will definitely help me with that.

I also want to fall in love with Dutch literature again. Sure, I hated most Dutch books I've read for school, but if I look hard enough I'm sure I'll find an author I like. I've actually once read one of Kader Abdolah's short stories and I loved it, so I want to read more of his work soon. And I want to try and read Harry Mulisch again, because while I hated and didn't understand his work before, there must be a reason why he's such a legend. 

So, what I want to start doing is read more Dutch literature. Of course this won't stop me from still enjoying my English books, but I basically just want the best of both worlds *insert Hannah Montana music here*. 

Bookhaul #1

I have never done a bookhaul before. It's not because I didn't want to do them, but because I, when I started blogging, went through a bit of a book buying slump. That's right, a book buying slump. I didn't know they existed either. I was fine with reading, I was actually reading a lot of books, but everytime I was looking for a new book to buy, all books just looked a bit 'meh' to me. So, naturally, I didn't buy any. And one can't do a bookhaul without any books.

But then, in summer, I kind of forced myself to start buying books again. Well, 'forcing' isn't really the right word, but I just knew that if I just bought a book, any book, I would fall in love with books all over again. That book was How Hard Can Love Be? by Holly Bourne. I already owned the first book in the series, and it was still sitting on my shelf, unread. However, I had this feeling that I am going to love the series, and that marathoning it would be perfect.

Then, I went a bit crazy. First, I picked up You Know Me Well by David Levithan and Nina LaCour and Everything Leads to You by Nina LaCour. I read both of these on my e-reader, but I loved them so much that I just needed a physical copy of both of them. And the fact that they had gorgeous covers might also have something to do with it.

I also pre-ordered Furthermore by Tahereh Mafi and Frost Like Night by Sara Raasch, which I was super excited about. I loved the whole premise of Furthermore, and I fell in love with it when I read the synopsis last year. It was definitely one of my most anticipated 2016 releases, just like Frost Like Night! I loved Snow Like Ashes and I couldn't wait to see how the series ended, especially because I didn't love the second book, Ice Like Fire, that much. You'd think I'd have read both of these by now, but no. And yes, I'm a bit angry at myself because of it.

Then my book-buying stopped for a little bit, until I read The Kiss of Deception by Mary E. Pearson and The Wrath and the Dawn by Renee Adieh. I loved The Kiss of Deception so so much that I immediately ordered the rest of the series. The Heart of Betrayal in physical form, and the Beauty of Darkness as an e-book. The paperback version of the Beauty of Darkness won't come out until August of next year, which is just incredibly frustrating. I also ordered the Rose and the Dagger, because while I didn't love the Wrath and the Dawn, I had a feeling that the series would get better, and I really wanted to know what was going to happen. 

I also pre-ordered a signed copy of The Hammer of Thor by Rick Riordan! The weird thing about his books is that, at least for this one and The Hidden Oracle, there wasn't even an option on Amazon to buy a 'normal' hardcover. Every hardcover was signed! Not that I mind, though. I am currently reading it and I'm LOVING it! 

And lastly, just last week, I went to my local bookstore because I've got to do those fun exposure exercises for my anxiety/agoraphobia. They hardly ever have any books I want, so I usually just walk around and read synopses of different books, but this time I actually spotted a book I wanted! It was in the Dutch kidlit section, so they hid it very well, but there it was: Holding up the Universe by Jennifer Niven! I immediately grabbed it and bought it. The guy working there probably thought I was very weird because I was trembling and hyper ventilating a bit, but hey, that's anxiety for you. How fun. But it was 100% worth it!

Besides all of these books, I also ordered a lot of classics, but that's for another blogpost.

What is the last book you bought?

TTT: Book Characters I'd Name My Child After

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme hosted by The Broke & the Bookish.

When I read what this week's TTT topic was going to be, I got really excited. You wouldn't think that a single 19-year-old girl who doesn't plan on having kids for the next 10 years would be thinking about what to name her children, but I DO. I have no idea why, but whenever I read about an awesome character with a great name, my automatic reaction is 'I should definitely call my future child that'. So here are a few of those characters:

I think basically everyone has a Harry Potter character they'd want to name their child after, and mine is Luna Lovegood. I love her character, and I've been obsessed with her since I first read about her. She's such a unique, smart and lovely character, and I just love the name Luna. My other favorite HP characters are Neville, Lupin and Tonks, but I didn't want to give my child names like that. I don't want them to hate me.

If I had a boy, I'd definitely want to name him after Samwise Gamgee from the Lord of the Rings series. I grew up watching the LotR movies, and my dad reads the books every summer, so the story means a lot to me. Sam has always been my favorite character, because he's so brave and such a loyal friend. And he's adorable. 

The next one is kind of a weird one, because I don't love the character, but I'd still love to name my child after Alice from Alice in Wonderland. Her character annoyed me very much, but I adore the overall story and I love watching the Disney movie. I also think Alice is just a wonderful name.

Up next is Lia from the Kiss of Deception. She's such a strong female character with an amazing personality, and if I had a daughter I'd want her to be like her. But maybe without the assassin chasing after her, because that'd complicate life a bit. 

I only recently fell in love with Pride and Prejudice, and I would love to name my child after one of the characters. There's just one problem: almost all the names in this book remind me of old English people. Naming my child Elizabeth or Fitzwilliam would just feel very wrong. And I kind of hate the name Fitzwilliam. So if I got to change the names just a bit, I would love to name my son Charlie, after Mr. Bingley who is just the cutest little puppy ever, and I'd name my daughter Eliza, after Elizabeth Bennet. And after Eliza from the musical Hamilton, because, how could I not?

The next character I'd name my child after is a bit like Luna Lovegood: Winter from The Lunar Chronicles. They're both a bit odd and different, but they're both just as amazing. Winter is my favorite character from TLC, because she's so incredibly lovely and selfless. I also really like seasonal names, so that's a plus.

And how can I get through a post that's basically about all of my favorite characters, without mentioning one of my favorite series: The Heroes of Olympus? I would definitely want to name a character after Percy or Annabeth, or basically anyone from this series. Maybe except for Piper. Not because she's not a great character, because I LOVE HER, but I just don't really like her name.

So, those are some of the book characters I'd name my child after! Now tell me, what book character would you name your child after?

A Few (Not Too Scary) October Book Recommendations

Who's that person that's making an October book recommendation post in the middle of October? Yep, that's me. I've just been seeing loads of October book recommendation videos and blogposts that included very dark and scary books, and I wanted to make my own post with books that aren't that scary. Sure, it's the perfect time of the year to read scary books, and if that's what you like then go for it! But if you're even a bit like me and can't handle super scary stuff because it keeps you up at night, and you stay far away from any horror or thrillers, then this post is for you!

The Secret of Dreadwillow Carse by Brian Farrey is a book I read last month and totally loved! It's about these two girls, a princess and a 'normal' girl, who are both drawn to the dark and scary woods near the village that no one dares to enter called the Dreadwillow Carse. The book is definitely dark and haunting at times, but because it's a MG book it's not 'I-can't-sleep-because-of-this-book-creepy'. It also deals with a few mental-health topics in an excellent way, so I can't recommend this one enough!

October is the perfect time for magical-realism, so that's why The Ocean at the End of the Lane by Neil Gaiman is also on this list. This book definitely has an eerie feel to it, but it's very beautiful and reads like a dream (mostly because you have no idea what's going on most of the time). Actually, all of Neil Gaiman's work might be perfect for October, and I should definitely pick up some of his other books this month.

When I think about October, I think about Halloween. And when I think about Halloween, I think about those kids dressed up as movie and book characters I've seen in movies. We don't celebrate Halloween here, so I have no idea if it's actually like that, but those dressed up kids reminded me of one of my favorite NA books called The Collector's Society. In this book, a bunch of characters from different works of literature form some sort of society to save other bookish characters, because someone is trying to destroy all bookish worlds. The series is excellent and it has some great characters, but just so you're warned: the series does get a lot darker the further it progresses.

If you want to read something this month that deals with mental health, I'd definitely recommend Some Kind of Happiness by Claire Legrand! This one's about a girl named Finley who has to spend her summer at her grandparent's house. Finley struggles a lot with anxiety and depression, and Everwood, a forest kingdom she often writes about, is her only escape. 
The way this book deals with mental health is excellent, and the way Finley feels is described in such a way that it feels very raw and real. Some Kind of Happiness also gives off very autumn-y feels even though it's set in summer, because it's mostly set in a forest.

Next is a book you should be reading soon anyway because the movie is coming out soon and that's A Monster Calls by Patrick Ness. A Monster Calls is about a little boy named Conor who get's a visit from a monster at night, and reading about monsters seems like a bit of a Halloween-y and October-y thing, right? The illustrations in this book give off very dark vibes, and the story is very haunting and heartbreaking. Fair warning: you will cry while reading this one. 
Oh, and I know the whole monster and dark illustrations thing sounds very scary, but it's not too bad!

And if you're an absolute daredevil who does want to read something scary, I have a Dutch YA thriller recommendation for you: Mel Wallis de Vries. Literally any of her books. I used to devour them when I was younger, and they all gave me goosebumps and kept me on the edge of my seat. I'm not sure if they're translated into English, but they're definitely available in both Dutch and German!

So, what books will you be reading this October?

Review: The Secret of Dreadwillow Carse by Brian Farrey

Title: The Secret of Dreadwillow Carse
Author: Brian Farrey
Genres: Middle Grade, Fantasy
Goodreads

A princess and a peasant girl must embark on a dangerous quest to outwit a centuries-old warning foretelling the fall of the Monarchy in this modern fairytale. In the center of the verdant Monarchy lies Dreadwillow Carse, a black and desolate bog that the happy people of the land do their best to ignore. Little is known about it, except for one dire warning: If any monarch enters Dreadwillow Carse, then the Monarchy will fall. Twelve-year-old Princess Jeniah yearns to know what the marsh could possibly conceal that might topple her family’s thousand-year reign of peace and prosperity.Meanwhile, in the nearby town of Emberfell, where everyone lives with unending joy, a girl named Aon hides a sorrow she can never reveal. She knows that something in the carse--something that sings a haunting tune only Aon can hear--holds the cure for her sadness. Yet no matter how many times she tries to enter, the terror-inducing dreadwillow trees keep her away.After a chance meeting, Princess Jeniah and Aon hatch a plan to send Aon into the heart of the carse to unlock its darkest secret. But when Aon doesn’t return, a guilt-stricken Jeniah must enter the carse to try and rescue her friend--even if it means risking the entire Monarchy.

Rating: ★★★★/5 stars

The Secret of Dreadwillow Carse tells us the story of two 12 year old girls living in Emberfell; princess Jeniah, and Aon. The princess's mother is dying, and she will soon have to be queen. Jeniah is terrified she will mess up because she has no idea how to rule, and her mother has only told her one thing: do not enter dreadwillow carse, or the monarchy will fall. However, this only spikes Jeniah's curiosity. What is in the carse that could ruin thousands of years of peace? 

Then there's Aon, a girl with a secret. She is the only one who can feel sadness in a world where the only emotion people feel is happiness. She doesn't understand why, but she knows one thing: the dreadwillow carse holds the cure for her sadness. Together, the girls form a plan to send Aon into the heart of the carse to discover it's secrets, but when Aon doesn't return Jeniah has no choice but to find her friend. She enters the carse herself, even though it risks the entire monarchy. 

The Secret of Dreadwillow Carse was very different from what I thought it would be. Where I thought I'd get a cutesy book that wouldn't be more than just a fun read, I got so much more. The book, while disturbing at times, had a truly magical feel to it. It read like a dream, and I couldn't help finishing it in one sitting.

This book has it all: 2 amazingly strong main characters, an incredible friendship, a (very creepy) fairytale like setting, beautiful writing, and a valuable message for it's readers. It's a great book for any middle-schooler, or anyone who loved middle grade novels, like me.

September Wrap-Up

It's currently raining outside, I'm wearing a big sweater and I have a steaming cup of tea sitting in front of me: it's autumn! I couldn't be happier, because there might be nothing I love more than autumn. I feel so much more myself while wearing sweaters, baking apple pies and walking through a very colorful forest, and I can't wait to see what this autumn will bring. 
September has been a weird and busy month for me. I did a lot of things that I wasn't able to do before (anxiety wise) and the biggest thing of all is that I started school again! I now take three classes at home: English, Math and History. It's been very challenging, because I haven't done any schoolwork for the past one, maybe two years, so I'm a bit out of it. My concentration gone after about five minutes, and it feels like everything I read just isn't saved in my brain. Let's hope that this will improve after a few weeks, but we'll see. 
I also participated in the #DiverseAThon last month (you can read my #DiverseAThon wrap-up here), and I loved every second of it. I really learned a lot, and I am determined to read more diversely in the future. 

• The Kiss of Deception, by Mary E. Pearson - ★★★★★/5 stars
• Electra, by Euripides - ★★/5 stars                                      
• Everything Leads to You, by Nina LaCour - ★★★★/5 stars             
• The Secret of Dreadwillow Carse, by Brian Farrey - ★★★★/5 stars
• Some Kind of Happiness, by Claire Legrand - ★★★★★/5 stars   
• Girl Against the Universe, by Paula Stokes - ★★★★/5 stars
• George, by Alex Gino - ★★★★/5 stars
• The Wrath and the Dawn, by Renee Adieh - ★★★/5 stars
• The Heart of Betrayal, by Mary E. Pearson - ★★★★★/5 stars 
• The Beauty of Darkness, by Mary E. Pearson - ★★★★/5 stars

It's quite a lot of books, but as you can see I gave most of them a very high rating, so I couldn't be happier. I also finally got around to reading The Kiss of Deception, and I marathoned the whole series afterwards. I was definitely kicking myself about not picking up this series sooner, because it was excellent. It might even be one of my favorite series. The world was so beautifully complex, and the main character was such a strong but kind female. But more on that in my review! (If I ever decide to write one. Oops.)

After reading such a huge amount of book in September, I find myself in a bit of a reading slump at the moment. I tried picking up The Rose and the Dagger, and a book I got for review, Heir of Thunder, but I just couldn't get into them. So, besides my listening to Pride and Prejudice, I'm not reading anything at the moment.

I did, however, start watching One Upon a Time again, after not watching for a few months. I find myself completely falling in love with it all over again. I am currently about halfway through season five, and I'm bracing myself for a certain character's dead. I got spoiled for it, and let me just tell you that I'M NOT READY. But I will never be, so I should just get it over with, I guess. 

Anyway, I hope you've all had a lovely September, and you'll have an amazing October!

Review: Red Queen by Victoria Aveyard

Title: Red Queen

Author: Victoria Aveyard
Genres: Fantasy, YA
Goodreads

This is a world divided by blood – red or silver.The Reds are commoners, ruled by a Silver elite in possession of god-like superpowers. And to Mare Barrow, a seventeen-year-old Red girl from the poverty-stricken Stilts, it seems like nothing will ever change.That is, until she finds herself working in the Silver Palace. Here, surrounded by the people she hates the most, Mare discovers that, despite her red blood, she possesses a deadly power of her own. One that threatens to destroy the balance of power.Fearful of Mare’s potential, the Silvers hide her in plain view, declaring her a long-lost Silver princess, now engaged to a Silver prince. Despite knowing that one misstep would mean her death, Mare works silently to help the Red Guard, a militant resistance group, and bring down the Silver regime.But this is a world of betrayal and lies, and Mare has entered a dangerous dance – Reds against Silvers, prince against prince, and Mare against her own heart.

Rating: ★★★/5 stars
 

Red Queen is set in a world where people are divided by blood type. There's the Silvers, the elite who all have a certain superpower, and the Reds, the commoners, who have to do all the dirty work for the Silvers. 

In Red Queen, we follow a girl named Mare Barrow, a 17 year old Red, who suddenly finds herself working in the Silver palace. Here, she discovers that despite her red blood, she has a deadly superpower of her own. However, the king and queen find out as well, and in a desperate attempt to keep this hidden and not cause a lot of chaos, Mare finds herself engaged to a Silver prince. 

Now, living in a palace where one misstep can cause her death, she is secretly working with a resistance group to bring down the Silver regime, and she finds herself falling for a prince.

I didn't really like Red Queen, but after hearing so many people talk bad about this book, I didn't really expect to. I think the fact that I went into this book with very low expectations, actually saved it for me. 

So, what did I like, and what did I dislike about Red Queen?

Likes:

• Even though the plot resembled a lot of other dystopians, I still really liked it. It definitely reminded me why I loved dystopians so much in the first place. 
• The main character, Mare Barrow, was a great main character. She's very likeable and brave. She won't go down without a fight. 
• The action scenes were excellent! The kept me on the edge of my seat, and made me unable to stop reading until it was over. They were very fast-paced without feeling chaotic, which is a difficult thing to pull off. 

Dislikes:

• Usually while reading a book, I can always picture what the characters and places look like, but while reading this one, I just couldn't. It felt like I was reading the book blindly (which doesn't really make any sense) and I really didn't like it.
• I got bored. So bored, in fact, that I had to read the last few sentences of the book to keep me from DNF'ing it. Luckily the last few sentences were really intriguing, and the book did get a bit better towards the end. 
• The ending didn't sit very well with me. (SPOILER ALERT!) The fact that Prince Maven's character could change so drastically in just a few seconds felt very weird, and very unrealistic. But, granted, it was a plot-twist that I didn't see coming. 

Even though I didn't love Red Queen, I'm still planning on reading the second book because I'm very curious about what's going to happen next.

Review: Girl Against the Universe by Paula Stokes

Title: Girl Against the Universe

Author: Paula Stokes
Genres: YA, Contemporary
Goodreads

'Maguire is bad luck.No matter how many charms she buys off the internet or good luck rituals she performs each morning, horrible things happen when Maguire is around. Like that time the rollercoaster jumped off its tracks. Or the time the house next door caught on fire. Or that time her brother, father, and uncle were all killed in a car crash—and Maguire walked away with barely a scratch.It’s safest for Maguire to hide out in her room, where she can cause less damage and avoid meeting new people who she could hurt. But then she meets Jordy, an aspiring tennis star. Jordy is confident, talented, and lucky, and he’s convinced he can help Maguire break her unlucky streak. Maguire knows that the best thing she can do for Jordy is to stay away. But it turns out staying away is harder than she thought.From author Paula Stokes comes a funny and poignant novel about accepting the past, embracing the future, and learning to make your own luck.'

Rating: ★★★★/5 stars

Girl Against the Universe is about a girl named Maguire, who's convinced she's bad luck. This is because horrible things happen when she's around. Her father, brother and uncle were killed in a car crash where she walked away with barely a scratch. The rollercoaster she was in with her friends jumped off its tracks, and everyone broke something except for her. Oh, and she accidentally set her house on fire.

She hardly leaves her house anymore, when her therapist encourages her to join a sport to help her deal with her feelings - and she picks tennis. This turns out to be the best thing she could have done, because here she forms new friendships, meets the very hunky tennis coach Jordy, and she learns that she's actually pretty lucky.

I have no idea where to start with this review, so here are 4 things I loved about Girl Against the Universe:

1) Jordy. I fell head over heels in love with Jordy while reading about him. Yes, his cocky woman-izer personality is unbelievably cliché, but it's so deliciously cliché. His adoration for Maguire made me melt, and his personality made me grin like an idiot.

2) The romance. If you know me at all, you know how much I hate those 'ohhh you have a mental illness, but here's a boy and now you're fixed' novels. And yes, this book seems to be one of those books, but it's not. Maguire doesn't need a saviour.  Yes, Jordy helps her with her therapy tasks, and she helps him, but ultimately it's not him who 'fixed her', she did it herself. And I'm damn proud of her. But besides that, their romance is the cutest thing in the world. It was Anna and the French Kiss level cute, which is, in my opinion, a big compliment.

3) The family aspect. After the accident, Maguire's mother remarried and Maguire now has 2 adorable little siblings. Her little sister was such a ray of sunshine and I loved her so much, but the thing I loved most was Maguire's relationship with her stepdad. There's a very important scene between the two of them, where they open up to each other about their feelings and what's going on, and I loved it so much! Her stepdad even offered Maguire to help her with her therapy tasks, and this made me so happy that I had tears streaming down my face. 

4) The friends. I looooved the friendships Maguire formed with Penn and Jade. They both had very fun and outspoken personalities, and they were so supportive! Jade actually reminded me a lot of one of my best friends, and that might be why I loved her so much <3

So, if everything was so amazing, why didn't I give it 5 stars? Well, because there was one thing that I really didn't like.

I'm very sensitive when it comes to anxiety-issues, because I've been struggling with them for years. That's why some things Maguire did in this book didn't feel right. For example: for one of her therapy tasks she has to go for a drive with someone else besides her mom, so she picks Jordy. They go for a short drive, and she has a panic attack. A week later they go for a 3 hour drive, and she isn't struggling with it at all. This was very frustrating to me, because it just didn't feel realistic at all. But maybe that's just me.

All in all, I really enjoyed this one, and I wish there were more books out there like this one. And, above all, I wish Jordy was real <3