Books for young people
Forward’s latest Podcast covers the importance of reading. I agree. Reading is one of the most important things public relations practitioners, or anyone for that matter, can do. I happened to have recently compiled a list of books I read when I was younger. When I visited the Netherlands last December, a movie version of one of my favorite childhood books was released. Naturally, I went to see it. It was an English language film, so if anyone would love to see it, look for Crusade in Jeans.
Crusade in Jeans, or Kruistocht in Spijkerbroek as it is properly called in Dutch, was written by Thea Beckman, who was renowned for her historical fiction books written especially for young people. From memory, I counted 14 books I have read by Beckman. Below follows a list of those books. I have also included two other Dutch authors who wrote some excellent books for young people (including English titles where available).
Seeing that list, however, I realize that I need to read more books and specifically fiction books. I am still reading quite a lot, it just changed into newspapers, magazines, blogs and non-fiction books. The last fiction book I read was Brave New World and I loved it. Well-written fiction keeps the mind going and leads to more creative language use, and creativity in general.
Going back to books for young people: Thea Beckman is responsible for instilling an insatiable curiosity and a broad-ranging interest in history in me. Her books changed, and even enhanced, my life quite a bit. Here’s the list of books I recommend:
Thea Beckman
De doge-ring van Venetie
Kruistocht in spijkerbroek (Crusade in Jeans)
Hasse Simonsdochter
De val van de Vredeborch
Het geheim van Rotterdam
Zwerftocht met Korilu
Wij zijn wegwerpkinderen
Wonderkinderen
Trilogies by Thea Beckman
1. Kinderen van moeder aarde
2. Het helse paradijs
3. Gulden vlies van Thule
1. Geef me de ruimte
2. Triomf van de verschroeide aarde
3. Rad van fortuin
Jan Terlouw
Pjotr
Oorlogswinter (Winter in wartime)
Koning van Katoren (How to become king)
Briefgeheim
De Kloof
Evert Hartman
Oorlog zonder vrienden (War without friends)
De vloek van Polyfemos
Niemand houdt mij tegen: Een avontuur in de 22ste eeuw
De voorspelling
2 Responses to “Books for young people”
Comments
1 Paull Young 5 March 2007 @ 1:37 pm
G’day Marc, glad you liked the podcast mate!
Great to see you posted a list… can’t say I’ve read any of them. Are any in English? And are they adult books or children’s books? I hear you on Alduos Huxley.
Btw - I think I might be making my first visit to the Netherlands soon! I’m planning on heading to Amsterdam next weekend. Any advice you could give me would be sweet!
2 Marc 5 March 2007 @ 2:57 pm
Hi Paull, thanks for the comments.
The ones followed by an English title are the ones that I found translations for (links to Amazon). They are all children’s books, but I’m fairly convinced an adult would still enjoy most of them.
And on the visit to Amsterdam, here’s what you should not miss:
- Van Gogh Museum: the most extensive collection of van Gogh’s works you will find.
- Anne Frank Huis: a gripping and most interesting experience. You will leave the house a changed person and you get to see the real diary on display.
- Concertgebouw: acoustically one of the most famous concert halls in the world. Home of the renowned Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra. Catch whatever you can hear, whether it is a recital by Radu Lupu, the Concertgebouw Orchestra, or Jaap van Zweden conducting the Radio Filharmonisch Orkest.
- Vondelpark: it’s like New York’s Central Park, but smaller.
- Biking: rent a bike and take it through the city (including Vondelpark, but especially the Jordaan neighborhood).
Worth checking out for just a minute:
- Red Light District: it is interesting to see the difference between tourists and customers.
- Canal boat tour: just get it over with, it’s a good introduction to the city. (But leave the real exploring to the biking!)
And please, by all means, do miss:
- Coffeeshops: I’d rather have a Chai tea from Starbucks.
- The Sex Museum: it’s a tourist trap.
- Anything wooden shoe or tulip related: need I say more?
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