BOOK REVIEW | THE THING AROUND YOUR NECK BY CHIMAMANDA NGOZI ADICHIE

Title: The Thing Around Your Neck
Author: Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
Published: 2009
Pages: 218
Rating: 4/5

"This is a short story collection, set in Nigeria. In “A Private Experience,” a medical student hides from a violent riot with a poor Muslim woman whose dignity and faith force her to confront the realities and fears she’s been pushing away. In “Tomorrow Is Too Far,” a woman unlocks the devastating secret that surrounds her brother’s death. The young mother at the center of “Imitation” finds her comfortable life in Philadelphia threatened when she learns that her husband has moved his mistress into their Lagos home. And the title story depicts the choking loneliness of a Nigerian girl who moves to an America that turns out to be nothing like the country she expected; though falling in love brings her desires nearly within reach, a death in her homeland forces her to reexamine them."


This is the second short story collection I've ever read and although I didn't have a good first experience when reading 'My True Love Gave To Me', I really loved this short story collection!

All the stories are set in Nigeria, a place I normally never read about in either fiction or non-fiction but something that did intrigue me a lot. When reading the stories it felt like all stories had an important message to give when you had finished the story.

I really love the writing style Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie used and I'm really excited to read more/all of her work. I have 'Purple Hibiscus' on my shelf and I'm very excited to pick it up in the near future!

BOOK REVIEW | THIS IS WHERE IT ENDS BY MARIEKE NIJKAMP

Title: This Is Where It Ends
Author: Marieke Nijkamp
Published: 2016
Pages: 285
Rating: 4/5

10:00 a.m. The principal of Opportunity High School finishes her speech, welcoming the entire student body to a new semester and encouraging them to excel and achieve.
10:02 a.m. The students get up to leave the auditorium for their next class.
10:03 a.m. The auditorium doors won't open.
10:05 a.m. Someone starts shooting.

Told from four different perspectives over the span of fifty-four harrowing minutes, terror reigns as one student’s calculated revenge turns into the ultimate game of survival.


Ever since this book first got attention I was really curious to read this. This book is about a school shooting, something that nowadays happens a lot in America. Something that is very sad but in my opinion also is something that needs to be educated about. I was curious about the message this book was going to bring.

The way the story is told is quite cool. It's told from multiple perspectives, over a time spend of a couple of minutes each time. I personally found that this kept me really curious about what was going to happen.

I really liked the fact that this book had a very diverse set of characters. What I did find unfortunate is the fact that we didn't read in the perspective of the shooter. I think this could've made the book a whole lot more interesting. 

Although this was a really good read, I think that I would have liked this book a whole lot more as a 14-year old. I think this is definitely aimed for the younger audience of the young adult genre. 

BOOK REVIEW | THE VEGETARIAN BY HAN KANG

Title: The Vegetarian
Author: Han Kang
Published: 2016
Language: Korean
Pages: 192
Rating: 4/5
Translator: Deborah Smith


Before the nightmare, Yeong-hye and her husband lived an ordinary life. But when splintering, blood-soaked images start haunting her thoughts, Yeong-hye decides to purge her mind and renounce eating meat. In a country where societal mores are strictly obeyed, Yeong-hye's decision to embrace a more “plant-like” existence is a shocking act of subversion. 



I was really excited to finally pick up 'The Vegetarian' since it has been on my wishlist for so long. I am really curious to read more translated fiction and had never read a book from South-Korea. I think that the book starting with someone becoming a vegetarian is a really interesting start for a book about mental health. 

This book had plots and twists of which I never could imagine them happening when I imagined what this book would be about. What I really liked about this story is that you can see the mental illness 'being born' you see how it develops and grows within our main character.

This book is separated in 3 parts, and in the second part we also experience sexual desire, but again not as we are used to. We experience it not about lust objects and sexual desire from human to human but about the power of an individual. 

This was a book like no others.

BOOK REVIEW | MEN EXPLAIN THINGS TO ME BY REBECCA SOLNIT

Title: Men Explain Things To Me
Author: Rebecca Solnit
Published: 2014
Language: English
Pages: 130
Rating: 4/5

"In her comic, scathing essay “Men Explain Things to Me,” Rebecca Solnit took on what often goes wrong in conversations between men and women. She wrote about men who wrongly assume they know things and wrongly assume women don’t, about why this arises, and how this aspect of the gender wars works, airing some of her own hilariously awful encounters."

I found this a very interesting read. Since I listened to Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie's TED talk in the end of 2016 I have been interested in discovering the feminism topic. For me it felt like 'Men Explain Things To Me' was a good book to start with. I felt like it explained the basics of feminism. 

It's a relatively quick read but the emotion that comes with this book, makes it no fast read. Most of the numbers that I now read about for the first time are so shocking, as well as the fact that most numbers get explained with horrific stories. 

I would recommend this book if you are new to the topic of feminism and would like to discover this subject. I think that it won't technically be mind-blowing to ones that have been reading more about feminism. 

BOOK REVIEW | NAAMLOOS BY PEPIJN LANEN

Title: Naamloos
Author: Pepijn Lanen
Published: 2016
Language: Dutch
Pages: 254
Rating: 4/5

In 'Naamloos' we follow a month in the life of a man who can not remember who he is. We read about his confusing time, in a battle against addictions and fear, and a fight against himself. 


Pepijn Lanen is in the Netherlands very famous for his work as artist in the band 'De Jeugd van Tegenwoordig'. When I saw he had a book coming out I was very curious about it. I was excited to see what he had to offer - Dutch literature wise. 

This book surprised me very pleasantly. Pepijn is just as inventive, witty and original in this book as in the songs he writes. The writing style is easy to follow, and the short chapters keep it fast paced, even though the writing sometimes got a little monotone. 

I would really like to see this book gets translated, so that non-Dutch reading countries can see what a Dutch writer like Pepijn has to offer to our modern literature. 

This book is available to listen for free on Spotify (in Dutch). 

BOOK REVIEW | A THOUSAND PIECES OF YOU BY CLAUDIA GRAY

Title: A Thousand Pieces of You
Author: Claudia Gray
Published: 2014
Language: English
Pages: 358
Rating: 4/5

"Marguerite Caine's physicist parents are known for their groundbreaking achievements. Their most astonishing invention, called the Firebird, allows users to jump into multiple universes—and promises to revolutionize science forever. But then Marguerite's father is murdered, and the killer—her parent's handsome, enigmatic assistant Paul— escapes into another dimension before the law can touch him. Marguerite refuses to let the man who destroyed her family go free. So she races after Paul through different universes, always leaping into another version of herself. But she also meets alternate versions of the people she knows—including Paul, whose life entangles with hers in increasingly familiar ways. Before long she begins to question Paul's guilt—as well as her own heart. And soon she discovers the truth behind her father's death is far more sinister than she expected."

This was a bookclub pick and I was very excited to pick this up. Mostly because the cover was so appealing, and when I read the back I saw it was recommended to 'Orphan Black' fans. I was super enthousiast to start this book. 

In this book we meet a handful of different characters but we deal the most with Marguerite, Paul and Theo. All three of who were awesome characters! The character building was great and I can't wait to see how they evolve in the next two books.

What I loved as well was the world building. We travel through different dimensions within the live of Marguerite and see the different versions of her living in different places/time. This was super awesome to read about and very well executed. 

I would recommend this book if you are a fan of dystopian's with a girly twist to it!

Get your copy of 'A Thousand Pieces of You' here!

BOOK REVIEW | THE ROSE AND THE DAGGER BY RENEE AHDIEH

Title: The Rose and the Dagger
Author: Renee Ahdieh
Published: 2016
Language: English
Pages: 416
Rating: 4/5

This review contains spoilers for 'The Wrath and the Dawn', book 1 in 'The Wrath and the Dawn' duology.

"In 'The Rose and the Dagger' we follow the aftermath of what happened to the city Rey and it's ruler who'm are both vulnerable. We follow the multiple characters we first got to meet in 'The Wrath and the Dawn' such as Shazrad, Khalid and Tariq."

It took me two and a halve month to finally finish this book. This was not because I didn't enjoy the book enough, it was all through the lack of time. I do think the fact that it took me so long to read this book, made me enjoy it a little less. I couldn't invest in the story as much as I wanted to, I think that once I will re-read this duology, in a short period of time, I will like it much better.

Anyhow, I did really enjoy this story. I really liked the setting and I liked where Renee brought this story. I loved the characters in this book and the writing style is great. almost poetical. 

Although I really loved it, it didn't live up to the kick-ass start we had in the first book. Therefor I gave this book 4/5. 

Buy your copy on Book Depository here!

BOOK REVIEW | HARRY POTTER AND THE CURSED CHILD BY J.K. ROWLING, JACK THORNE AND JOHN TIFANNY

Title: Harry Potter and the Cursed Child
Author: J.K. Rowling, Jack Thorne and John Tifanny
Published: 2016
Language: English
Pages: 327
Rating: 4/5

"It was always difficult being Harry Potter and it isn’t much easier now that he is an overworked employee of the Ministry of Magic, a husband and father of three school-age children. While Harry grapples with a past that refuses to stay where it belongs, his youngest son Albus must struggle with the weight of a family legacy he never wanted. As past and present fuse ominously, both father and son learn the uncomfortable truth: sometimes, darkness comes from unexpected places."

I went in to this book without any expectations. I didn't want to see this as the eight book in the Harry Potter series, and also not as a book written by J.K. Rowling but a story written by Jack Thorne based on a new story by J.K. Rowling, Jack Thorne and John Tiffany. That's what I did, and I really enjoyed the reading experience. 

It was absolutely amazing, to meet the new characters J.K. Rowling had to offer and although it was quite the cliche, and something that probably a lot of fans could have come up with, the story was great. I really liked the elements that came back and I would love to see the play one day!

I can definitely see and understand why people either love it or hate it, but if you are still in doubt whether to read it or not, I would highly recommend to give it a chance.

BOOK REVIEW | TEACHING MY MOTHER HOW TO GIVE BIRTH BY WARSAN SHIRE

Title: Teaching My Mother How To Give Birth
Author: Warsan Shire
Published: 2011
Language: English
Pages: 37
Rating: 4/5

'Teaching My Mother How To Give Birth' is a poetry collection by Kenyan-born Warsan Shire.

I am really interested in reading more poetry and this was high on my list of poetry I wanted to read. This did not disappoint at all. The poetry was powerful, gripping and beautiful. Some of the poetry I liked more than others, but most I loved.

One of my favorite parts was:

"You are her mother.

Why did you not warn her,

hold her like a rotting boat

and tell her that men will not love her

if she is covered in continents,

if her teeth are small colonies,

if her stomach is an island

if her thighs are borders?

What man wants to lie down

and watch the world burn

in his bedroom?

Your daughter ’s face is a small riot,

her hands are a civil war,

a refugee camp behind each ear,

a body littered with ugly things.

But God,

doesn’t she wear

the world well?"

BOOK REVIEW | ISLA AND THE HAPPILY EVER AFTER BY STEPHANIE PERKINS

Title: Isla and the Happily Ever After
Author: Stephanie Perkins
Published: 2014
Language: English
Pages: 339
Rating: 4/5


"Hopeless romantic Isla has had a crush on introspective cartoonist Josh since their first year at the School of America in Paris. And after a chance encounter in Manhattan over the summer, romance might be closer than Isla imagined. But as they begin their senior year back in France, Isla and Josh are forced to confront the challenges every young couple must face, including family drama, uncertainty about their college futures, and the very real possibility of being apart. "

Isla and the Happily Ever After is the last in this companion serie consisting of three books, and I definitely liked this one the best. First of all I absolutely adored Isla, I thought she was a lovely and sometimes relatable girl. I also absolutely adored Josh, he was cute and definitely fit in the image of what my imaginary boyfriend would look and act like.

This is in my opinion a typical book for it's genre, and this is not in a negative note at all! It is super cute, fluffy, easy to read and enjoyable!

One thing that did annoy me, is that one point some characters are 'feeling depressed'. I think that this term should have not been used. The way the characters feelings were described, I wouldn't say they were depressed, they were just not feeling to great. I think that when you use a term as depressed you really need to think twice. Are your characters really depressed or are they sad?

Overall I really liked this series, I am definitely planning to re-read them. I think I might pick up Anna and the French Kiss next year, because I read that one already over two years ago.

BOOK REVIEW | MY LADY JANE BY CYNTHIA HAND, BRODI AHSTON AND JODI MEADOWS

Title: My Lady Jane
Author: Cynthia Hand, Brodi Ashton and Jodi Meadows
Published: 2016
Language: English
Pages: 491
Rating: 4/5


"Edward (long live the king) is the King of England. He’s also dying, which is inconvenient, as he’s only sixteen and he’d much rather be planning for his first kiss than considering who will inherit his crown. Jane (reads too many books) is Edward’s cousin, and far more interested in books than romance. Unfortunately for Jane, Edward has arranged to marry her off to secure the line of succession. And there’s something a little odd about her intended. Gifford (call him G) is a horse. That is, he’s an Eðian (eth-y-un, for the uninitiated). Every day at dawn he becomes a noble chestnut steed—but then he wakes at dusk with a mouthful of hay. It’s all very undignified."

The storyline hooked me instantly, it sounded fascinating and I was very intrigued to see how the writers had rewritten history. 

The characters we meet are all so lovely, especially our main characters Gifford, Edward and Jane. You almost instantly like them reading the first chapters about them, and grow on them even more as you continue the book. Most of the other side-figures were also lovely! 

The sarcasm and humor that was used in this book was on point. It was used at the right timing, and it had the right amount of it throughout the whole book.

For me the downside was the ending, where the whole book took it's time to build up, I felt like the ending was rushed. Way to rushed, I think for that reason the ending was a lot less action packed and exciting as it could have been.

BOOK REVIEW | LOLA AND THE BOY NEXT DOOR BY STEPHANIE PERKINS

Title: Lola and the Boy Next Door
Author: Stephanie Perkins
First published: 2014
Language: English
Pages: 384
Rating: 4/5


"Budding designer Lola Nolan doesn't believe in fashion... she believes in costume. The more expressive the outfit – the more sparkly, more wild – the better. And life is pretty close to perfect for Lola, especially with her hot rocker boyfriend. That is, until the Bell twins, Calliope and Cricket return to the neighbourhood and unearth a past of hurt that Lola thought was long buried. So when talented inventor Cricket steps out from his twin sister's shadow and back into Lola's life, she must finally face up to a lifetime of feelings for the boy next door. Could the boy from Lola's past be the love of her future?"

I read 'Anna and the French Kiss' two years ago and ever since I have been wanting to pick up the other two companion novels but I never did. A couple of months ago I finally bought them and because I knew I was going to go to Crete, I decided to save them for my holiday. I find these books the perfect summer read.

I really liked our main character Lola, she was different and unique and you really get to see this. I also completely fell for Cricket, Lola's neighbour, I thought he was an absolute sweetheart. I was not to keen on Max, Lola's boyfriend. He was annoying, needy and way too jealous. 

I really liked the storyline, it was quite simple, but the things that happen along it's way are great. What I really liked as well is that family bonding also emerges. It was a very important aspect in this book, and is something I always really enjoy reading about.

This book was a lovely read, and I can't wait to complete the companion trilogy by reading 'Isla and the Happily Ever After' soon. 

BOOK REVIEW | SHATTER ME BY TAHEREH MAFI

Title: Shatter Me
Author: Tahereh Mafi
First published: 2011
Language: English
Pages: 338
Rating: 4/5

"Juliette hasn’t touched anyone in exactly 264 days. The last time she did, it was an accident, but The Reestablishment locked her up for murder. No one knows why Juliette’s touch is fatal. As long as she doesn’t hurt anyone else, no one really cares. The world is too busy crumbling to pieces to pay attention to a 17-year-old girl. Diseases are destroying the population, food is hard to find, birds don’t fly anymore, and the clouds are the wrong color."

This book was always so hyped on BookTube but it never really got my interest, but it was this months bookclub pick so I decided to pick it up anyway. To my surprise I actually really liked it! 

I found the story at first, very very interesting. The concept of a girl being locked away, away from every human contact because touching can kill, was something I never heard of before. I really liked Juliette as a character as well as Adam (book crush nr. 2). But, I found Warner so super annoying. I don't understand why everybody he is so obsessed with him (yet?). I guess that I will might find that out in the second or third book.

I'm not really sure about the writing style just yet. Tahereh made Juliette say words multiple times, and she also couldn't stop mentioning the colour of Adam and Warren's eyes. It being such a quick read, I couldn't really be bothered with the sometimes repeating descriptive writing style. 

I am indeed very curious about the next read and am hoping to pick the final two books up before the end of this year!

BOOK REVIEW | THE STRANGE AND BEAUTIFUL SORROWS OF AVA LAVENDER BY LESLYE WALTON

Title: The Strange and Beautiful Sorrows of Ava Lavender
Author: Leslye Walton
First published: 2014
Language: English
Pages: 301
Rating: 4/5

Foolish love appears to be a Roux family birthright. And for Ava Lavender, a girl born with the wings of a bird, it is an ominous thing to inherit. In her quest to understand her peculiar disposition and a growing desire to join her peers, sixteen-year-old Ava ventures into the wider world. But it is a dangerous world for a naive girl. 

This is, I think the first book of magical realism that I am reading. Or at least, the first book of magical realism of which, I know that it is magical realism. Okay with that being said, I think I really want to discover more from this genre.

This book contains a story of loss and love that spans different generations. When I started the book I didn't know where it was going to go. It was different from what I expected from the synopsis, but it was even better than I expected it.

The characters were so lovely (except for a couple). I especially loved Rowe, such an intelligent, sweet boy. 

The writing style was great, the story itself beautiful and the characters absolutely lovely. I would definitely recommend this!

BOOK REVIEW | VECTOR BY SIMON DE WAAL

Title: Vector
Author: Simon de Waal
First published: 2016
Language: Dutch
Pages: 96
Rating: 4/5

At the end of the Cold War a deadly virus dissapears in a mysterious way. Twenty-five years later, in Amsterdam, a man called Alex, son of a runaway Russian scientist, get's confronted with the dark past of his dementing father. When his brother al of sudden apears in the picture, a well-kept secret surfaces. His father though, doesn't have any memories left of his past. Does he even have a brother? And what is 'his brother' searching for?

This is a Dutch thriller short-story that I got as a gift while buying an other book during 'De week van het spannende boek', the week of Dutch thrillers. When I read the back I was really interested in this story. It sounded very interesting, because it is very short I decided to read this when I was in the mood for something short and easy.

'Vector' was quite a good story. The prologue was exciting, the characters were cool and I really liked the setting of it, both in Russia and Amsterdam. I read some mixed reviews on Goodreads, most people think this book was too rushed, I disagree. I think these people forget that this is a short story that is meant to be short and sweet, and that is just what this is.

It was refreshing to read in Dutch. 

BOOK REVIEW | QUEEN OF HEARTS BY COLLEEN OAKES

Title: Queen of Hearts
Author: Colleen Oakes
First published: 2014
Language: English
Pages: 306
Rating: 4/5

"As Princess of Wonderland Palace and the future Queen of Hearts, Dinah’s days are an endless monotony of tea, tarts, and a stream of vicious humiliations at the hands of her father, the King of Hearts. The only highlight of her days is visiting Wardley, her childhood best friend, the future Knave of Hearts — and the love of her life. When an enchanting stranger arrives at the Palace, Dinah watches as everything she’s ever wanted threatens to crumble. As her coronation date approaches, a series of suspicious and bloody events suggests that something sinister stirs in the whimsical halls of Wonderland. It’s up to Dinah to unravel the mysteries that lurk both inside and under the Palace before she loses her own head to a clever and faceless foe."

Although I never read 'Alice in Wonderland' I was really interested in this re-telling and it did not disappoint. I flew through this book, it was such a light and easy read!

First of all, the world building. The world building in this book was absolutely amazing, it was so descriptive, you could imagine every chair, every corner, every detail of dresses and uniforms.  This is something I highly appreciate in a book!

The romance came quite early in this book and I though 'oh no', because it was your standard young adult romance. Luckily it almost didn't come back anywhere else in the book, and when it did it wasn't soppy lovey dovey. 

I really liked most of the characters but the main character Dinah, will have to grow on me in the following books. She is very youngish, but then again she is only sixteen. I think that her character will develop with the series.

I am really curious for the next book 'Blood of Wonderland', which will be published in January 2017.