My Book Reviews

This book was published in 1981; the version I read was a paperback published in 2005. In the meantime there were a lot more diggings in England and more facts came to light. It does not take away that this book has been very educating for me. To get the British nationality I expected to have to know a bit of British, rather English history. So I learned some bits about King Alfred and King Canute. In the end I did not have to do a sort of exam, I got my passport quite smoothly (after paying quite a lot of money). Because I am always interested in history I have been searching for books about the Dark Ages. From William the Conqueror on it is not hard to get information about the history, but before that it is quite a blur. That is why the days between the leaving of the Romans and the arrival of William of Normandy are regarded as "The Dark Ages". I always thought not a lot was known about these days, but this book showed me I was mistaken. It is known who were the Kings of

Another good book in the Tuva Moodyson series. They really should make a TV series out of these brilliant books. The story is situated in and around a village and a town in Varmland, a part of Sweden. I have been there myself on a cycle holiday and I can tell you that the description of the woods is very good. I have only been there in the summer time, but I can imagine very well how things would be in autumn. All the (by now) regular characters are in the book and you can see how Tuva's life probably is going to change because of her relationship with police woman Noora. The story - as always - is quite chilling, especially if you are afraid for dentists, like me. Also as always I don't want to spoil the fun and tell anything about the plot. What I dislike is that the story is not totally finished, I prefer novels to have a beginning, something in the middle and an ending. That is my only reason to give this book no more than 3 stars.

  Caesar Little Caesar by   Tommy Wieringa   (artist) Albert van der Steeg 's review May 22, 2024   ·    edit it was amazing A totally different book compared to Joe Speedboat. This is about the quest of main person and person who tells his story from his point of view. His quest is for reasons why his family has become so dysfunctional after his birth. From being a Mommy's boy he grows into being a cynical adult after discovering his mother had a career as a famous porn actress before he was born. Somehow he becomes a person not able to get into proper relation ships himself and who is to be blamed? He starts with the obvious, the mother who he is following all over the world. He sees how nature effects people and how people effect nature and a lot is very destructive. Discovering the art and the nature of his father makes him look at things in a different way, but it is quite a bit too late to change anything that has been destroyed by then. While Joe Speedboat is a very posi

It is sad that I had to read this book in English, while it was written in the language of the country I was born in. The "advantages" of Brexit. I have to say that the translator, Sam Garrett, did an excellent job as far as I can tell. The story is told from the point of view of Frank, who I think is the main person in this story. He is a very unlikely hero while being very disabled. The story is mainly how his life got influenced by Joe Speedboat and is also the story of four (more or less) friends. The novel is totally not what you would expect of it when you think of the horrible things that happen in the book. It is a very positive book that you will read mostly with a big smile on your face. The main location of the book is a Dutch town, a very "normal" Dutch town. But the events are very much "un-Dutch", normal saying in Dutch is: "Act normal, that is weird enough for us." In this book everything is way over the top, but at the same time i

This is quite a good book, but I only give it 4 stars for a few reasons. While I learned a lot about the Irish independence war, the civil war, the Troubles, the Plantation, the reasons why Ireland was for so long a colony of England I did not like a few things. The writer often tells us the same thing twice, three times or even more. This happens on the same page or on following pages. Words can be altered, but it still will be the same. While I feel for the Irish and almost feel angry about what I read the writer has a lot of understanding for the English. I was a bit amazed by that, because the writer is being born in Northern Ireland. I also feel he could have included more about musicians like Phil Lynott and others who played in North and South during the Troubles. I won't forgive the writer for mentioning a country named Holland three times. When people talk I don't mind it too much, but in a work like this I do. There is no country with the name "Holland". The

When Juliet Armstrong is recruited by MI5 in 1940 she expects quite a lot. It must have been disappointing that the job mainly existed in typing. Transcripting audiotapes into typed text. After some time she notices that nobody in the job is who they pretend to be and is astounded that this also goes for herself. 10 years later she finds herself haunted by things and people she had chosen to forget. The book is a very pleasant read. I love the almost cynical, nonchalant style. Like not a lot is a reason to get worried or excited. Kate Atkinson is a writer I very much admire!