Since I began planning the study abroad experience back in the summer, I’ve become interested in all things Dutch. I made up a reading list so I can learn more about Dutch history and culture before our trip. It turns out there are lots of interesting books and a few films that have connections to the Netherlands. If you’re as obsessed as I am, you might enjoy some of these books and films:
- Crossing the Rhine A WWII story about the Allied battle for the Dutch city of Arnhem
- The Man Who Made Vermeers: Unvarnishing the Legend of Master Forger Han van Meegeren
- Tamar The Dutch girl’s grandfather dies in 1995 at the beginning of this book, and Tamar begins a journey to discover his role in the Dutch resistance of WWII. As her grandfather’s past comes alive for her, she discovers espionage, intrigue, and the love of a lifetime.
- I am Rembrandt’s Daughter This book about the Netherlands most famous painter is, according to Booklist, an “absorbing, romantic story of a teen who upends her worldview and, in doing so, grows into herself.”
- The Good Thief’s Guide to Amsterdam Publisher’sWeekly calls it an “… impressive debut, a comic whodunit from British entertainment lawyer Ewan”
- Tulipmania a carefully researched book about the tulip market “bubble” of the 1630s. Fortunes were made and lost—sounds like the current world financial industry!
- Black Book In this film set in The Hague under Nazi occupation, a beautiful Jewish woman avoids being deported to a death camp by becoming mistress to a Nazi officer. Contains scenes shot on location in The Hague. (Saw this and really liked it.)
- Steal a Pencil for Me a collection of love letters between Jews deported from Holland in WWII written in a German Concentration Camp
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