The Low Sky: Understanding the Dutch

Han van der Horst € 19.90

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Fully updated and revised, this book is considered a classic guide to getting to grips with the natives. And yes, that big sky does have an impact!

Doe maar gewoon dan doe je gek genoeg ? Act normally, that?s crazy enough. Nine out of ten people in the Netherlands will quote this well-worn saying if asked to come up with a basic trait of the Dutch character.

Teach Yourself Complete Dutch

Gerdi Quist and Dennis Strik € 34.99

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The complete course for a fun and effective way to learn Dutch. This best-selling course comprises a book and audio support which is easy to download to your MP3 player or iPod (components available separately).

I am Amsterdam

Thomas Schlijper € 29.95

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The ones who would like to have a daily confirmation that Amsterdam is beautiful should loyally follow the weblog of the photographer Thomas Schlijper.

He posts a new photo of the every-day Amsterdam: of a window washer on an insanely high ladder, of a homeless person with a flower pot on his head, of the canals in the evening light, of a comical traffic situation or simply of nice people.

A Millenium of Amsterdam

Fred Fedes € 29.90

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Author Fred Feddes threads together 40 stories about the original landscape of present-day Amsterdam, its reclamation, the changing relationship between water and land, and the continuing history of the city’s growth, rebuilding and urban planning.

The Dutch Golden Age

Hans Goedkoop and Kees Zandvliet € 29.95

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A beautifully illustrated book about the Golden Age of The Netherlands. Produced to Accompany the Dutch documentary series De Gouden Eeuw.

Amsterdam, a metropolitan village

Ewout Huibers € 50.00

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Amsterdam, a city with grit that embraces you, a city with the appeal of a metropolis and the flair of a Dutch village. This is a gorgeous photobook of Amsterdam.

Cloudless Amsterdam - City in Motion

Peter Elenbaas and Lambiek Berends € 32.50

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An unexpected and beautiful view of a changing city

From the wonderfully undulating Zeedijk and the monumental Westertoren to the copper-green Nemo in the Eastern Docks and the Water District of IJburg: Amsterdam has a wealth of striking places with impressive nuildings, fascinating streets and delightful squares.

A Short History of the Netherlands

P J Rietbergen € 22.90

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The development of the Netherlands over the centuries has been a remarkable one. Situated at 'the end of Europe,' between land and water, its people have, for more than three thousand years, fought to makethe best of a country unfavoured by nature.

Dutch Cooking Today

L. George € 7.50

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Dutch cooking today 60 modern and traditional recipes of favourite Duth foods Traditional foods to savour well-known appetizers, classic cakes and tarts, good and honest stews and one-pan dishes, plus timeless favourite desserts.

The Art of Living in Amsterdam

Melanie van Ogtrop € 52.99

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Amsterdam's historic network of concentric canals earned UNESCO World Heritage status in 2010. The impressive architecture and facades of this elegant town centre are mirrored by the luxury and chic of the building's interiors.

The Longing

Cornelia Warmenhoven
tell me: $13.56

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Set in the early 20th century, The Longing tells the story of a blended Dutch family who immigrate to the Land of Opportunity, in search of a better life.

Spinster Dora, marries widower Paul Taten and takes on his brood of children, but finds small-town life and her new husband’s family politics too much to bear, and soon they are heading by steam boat for a new future in America.

Trailing: a memoir

Kristin Louise Duncombe
CreateSpace: €13.65

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As the new wife of a Médecins Sans Frontières doctor posted to Kenya in the mid 90s, Kristin Duncombe soon discovered that love does not conquer all.

Despite travelling the world as an expat child, Duncombe’s early years could not begin to prepare her for life as a trailing spouse, or equip her for marriage to a dynamic, but frequently absent husband.

Third Culture Kids: Growing Up Among Worlds

David C. Pollock & Ruth E. Van Reken
Nicholas Brealey Publishing: €21.99

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Third Culture Kids (TCKs) are, as the title suggests, children who have grown up among worlds, living in other countries during their formative years.

This might not seem like a demographic worthy of a 300 page book, but the expat experience for most of us will have a profound impact on our emotional resilience and world outlook, and children are no exception.

New Explorers Guide to Dutch Digital Culture

Price: free or print on demand

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The New Explorers Guide to Dutch Digital Culture is a combination phonebook and wiki for all things digital art and culture in the Netherlands.

Virtueel Platform, a Dutch e-culture knowledge institute, has put together this comprehensive guide to the companies, institutes, and other organisations involved in the digital art and culture industry.

The Bee's Tour of Gouda: Buzzing Through Vinita's Lens

Persephone Abbott & Vinita Salomé
Maps & Illustrations by Kathy Nida
€20,50

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Cheese. Hard, tasty, bright yellow cheese. That’s what appears in many people’s minds when they think of Gouda.

But of course the cheese gets its name from a very historical little city in the South of Holland that’s featured in The Bee’s Tour of Gouda: Buzzing Through Vinita’s Lens.

Forced to Fly

Expatriates Everywhere
Summertime Publishing: €22.80

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If you’ve lived abroad, you no doubt have a fair few yarns to entertain your friends and family with when you go home.

But I don’t mean chronicles of wonderful foreign trips, historic architecture, or exotic sites. I’m talking tales of cultural catastrophes and embarrassing exchanges with foreigners in daily life.

An Inconvenient Posting

Laura J. Stephens
Summertime Publishing: €20.35

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An Inconvenient Posting is a frank, and often funny, memoir about one woman’s battle with depression when she relocated with her family to Texas for her husband’s job.

Author Laura J. Stephens was an experienced global nomad - having lived in Singapore previously, but the move to Houston came at a time when her life was going swimmingly at home in Kent.

Logbook of the Low Countries

Wout van der Toorn
Seaside Publishing: € 24.50

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You could be forgiven for thinking this is probably not something you’d buy on impulse. After all, it sounds like the sort of dusty old title you might stumble across in a secondhand bookshop.

But for any history buffs out there, don’t stop reading just yet…

The Dutch: Prelude to their Golden Age

Richard E. Schultz
Eternal Press: €37.99

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A historical novel about the time before the Dutch Golden Age? 'This could be hard work to wade through,' I said to myself.

But as often happens when I judge a book by its cover, I was completely wrong, and it was well worth the effort.

Quiet Amsterdam

Siobhan Wall
Frances Lincoln

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Now here’s an idea. Why not write a book about quiet, reflective little nooks in one of Europe’s most vibrant and bustling little cities?

What might sound like a dull excuse for a tourist guide, is actually an understated stroke of genius from an expat resident just looking for a spot of tranquility, in a tiny city with a reported four million visitors a year.

The Dutch and their Delta: Living below sea level

Jacob Vossestein
XPat Media: €24.95

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It’s a little known fact outside of the Netherlands that one third of this tiny country – if it weren’t for a couple of great big hulking dijks – would be submerged under rather a lot of water.

Left to Mother Nature, Schipol Airport would in fact be a lake (it’s 3 meters below sea level), and rural North Holland - where I used to live – should actually be reclaimed by the North Sea…

Colonel Baxter's Dutch Safari

Glenn Baxter
De Harmonie

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Cartoonist and artist Glen Baxter was first published in the Netherlands 40 years ago. Now he's back with a collection of absurdist drawings covering all things Dutch - from herring and tulips to Mondriaan and Rietveld chairs.

Dutch funnyman Wim de Bie, who curates the Glen Baxter Museum, provides the introduction to this slim volume of full-colour drawings and wry comments.

Raising Global Nomads

Robin Pascoe
Expatriate Press: €26.99

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Expats and their offspring enjoy gilded lives in many ways, and few would argue that growing up in a foreign country and experiencing life in other cultures brings with it enormous advantages that last a lifetime.

But there is a downside and anyone who’s moved overseas with a partner or parents will understand the intense psychological upheaval that is part of the package.

The Globalisation of Love

Wendy Williams
Summertime Publishing: €19.99

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If you’re cohabiting with or married to a partner from a different country, race, religion or culture, then this book will appeal to you.

The Globalisation of Love, or 'GloLo' as it’s becoming known, shines a jovial light on the little, and not so little foibles afflicting mixed match romances in modern times.

Amsterdam... The Essence

David Beckett
DJB Pubs: €19.95

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Glorious architecture, picturesque canals, a paradise for art and culture buffs, and possibly the most eclectic bunch of Europeans you’re likely to meet. That sums up Amsterdam for me.

I once saw Mini-Me’s twin wearing a bright yellow Panama hat smoking a big fat Cuban cigar while riding nonchalantly around Dam Square on a monkey bike and thought I was hallucinating - except I was stone cold sober. No one else seemed to bat an eyelid...

Man in a Mud Hut

Ian Mathie
Mosaïque Press: €24.85

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Few Europeans could boast of going native in rural Africa but author Ian Mathie made a habit of living in remote tribal villages while spearheading water resource projects in the 1970s.

Living in what was then Upper Volta (now Burkina Faso), Mathie was tasked with chaperoning a Whitehall ferret being sent to audit another UK government-funded project in neighbouring Nigeria.

Sunshine Soup

Jo Parfitt
Summertime Publishing: €19.60

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The life of an expat wife in a far-flung destination has all the classic ingredients for a jolly good chick-lit novel and who better to pen the story than someone who’s lived the life and turned it into an art form?

Sunshine Soup: Nourishing the Global Soul, is the first foray into fiction for renowned author, publisher and Expat Entrepreneur Jo Parfitt, and tells the story of a group of friends (and trailing spouses) living in Dubai in 2008.

Sammy's Next Move

Helen Maffini
Third Culture Kids Press: €16.80

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Sammy the snail is none too chuffed when his parents announce they are moving to Japan.

He’s only just got used to living in Italy and he’s really going to miss his playmates, so the prospect of having to make new friends in yet another country is distressing and upsetting.

Bride Price

Ian Mathie
Mosaique Press: €26.40

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With exotic landscapes, indigenous people and ancient customs borne of tribal history, Africa can beguile and unnerve visitors in equal measure.

Spiritual beliefs passed down through generations can seem primitive to those of us unfamiliar with their way of life, but not to author Ian Mathie who spent part of the 1970s working on water resource projects and staying in remote villages in deepest Africa.

Dealing with the Dutch

Jacob Vossestein
KIT Publishers: €18.50

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If you’re moving to the Netherlands then be warned, Lowlanders can be a bit blunt. In fact it’s fair to say that in business, as in daily life, brutal honesty and constructive criticism are dished out liberally as par for the course - which can be a bit of a shock to the system if you haven’t lived or worked alongside them before.

The Dutch are a self-confident, pragmatic, and exceedingly efficient race and these qualities combined with their shrewd nose for business can sometimes make for an off-putting combination.

Food Shopper's Guide to Holland

Ada Henne Koene with Connie Moser
Eburon: €14.50

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Dutch cuisine is a tad underwhelming, and for foody expats grocery shopping in Holland can be a disappointing and stressful experience, especially if you can’t understand the lingo on the packaging.

But thanks to two American writers (of European extraction) and their somewhat biblical Food Shopper’s Guide to Holland, a maiden voyage to a Dutch supermarket need no longer result in you wanting to open a vein.

Doctor Lark

Bill Larkworthy
Mosaique Press: €24.85

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I will admit to being a bit of a memoir junkie. I’ll read about anyone if it looks like they’ve led an interesting life, and Doctor Lark is one of those people.

Bill Larkworthy’s career as a Royal Air Force doctor and highly respected gastroenterologist spanned decades and took him all over the world, but most notably to the Middle East.

Whipped Cream Architecture

Niek Biegman
KIT Publishers

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It might sound like an odd title, but once you read the first few paragraphs it makes perfect sense.

Whipped cream is a book of photography with a few pages of information about the origins of the white painted stone 'wigs' that grace the gables of the grachtenpanden (canal houses) in Amsterdam.

Emotional Resilience and the Expat Child

Julia Simens
Summertime Publishing: €19.99

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Guilt inevitably afflicts all expat parents when they relocate their families around the world.

Despite the enormous advantages and privileges growing up as a global nomad, it’s sometimes hard to reconcile this with an unhappy child, distraught at the prospect of leaving friends behind and moving country yet again.

Expat Women: Confessions

Andrea Martins & Victoria Hepworth
Expat Women: £15.15

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Expatriating to a new country is exciting, but it can also be daunting.

If you are about to embark on your first trip as a ‘trailing spouse’, then you could probably do with some reassurance from someone who knows the ropes.

Confessions of a Dutch Reading Club

Patricia van Stratum
Troubador Publishing: £8.50

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The title might not tickle your fancy; but don’t let that put you off.

Confessions of a Dutch Reading Club is the work of first time author Patricia van Stratum who has penned an unusual tale about a group of middle-aged Dutch folk and surprisingly, it works.

A Moveable Marriage

Robin Pascoe
Expatriate Press Ltd: €9.99

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For the first time since before I had children, I’ve read a whole book in one day.

I didn’t intend to, I just got carried away. And although it meant neglecting the more trivial needs of my usually well cared for offspring, it was definitely worth it.

Walk & Eat Amsterdam

Cecily Layzell
Sunflower Books: £8.99

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This dinky little guide book is perfect for anyone already familiar with Amsterdam who wants to see more, and feast as they go.

If you’ve seen the sights, visited the museums and experienced the delights of this fair city - and you enjoy troughing, then Walk & Eat Amsterdam is a bit of a treasure.

Uit Kijk Punten/ Scenic Points Amsterdam

Eelco van Geene & Marijke Mooy
Gottmer €18.95

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If you’ve ever stood on top of a building looking out over a big city and wondered what you can see in the distance then Uit Kijk Punten might tickle your fancy.

Eelco van Geene & Marijke Mooy have created an alternative guide book that instead of leading you around the city at ground level, it views Amsterdam from above and nicely presents it in photographs.

The UnDutchables:

Colin White & Laurie Boucke
White Boucke Publishing €14.99

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I felt drawn to The UnDutchables by its supposed notoriety and the conflicting reports I’d been given. Surprisingly my Dutch friend liked it (‘brilliantly accurate!’) but an English friend didn’t, 'It’s snide and spiteful,' she said.

It turned out that both were right. It’s all of the above, but I have to confess to spending a few hours of guilty pleasure sniggering out loud at some of the admittedly scathing, but highly amusing observations.

Holland Handbook 2011

XPAT MEDIA: €29.90

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No matter how organised you are, moving to a new country is daunting. Admittedly there are more intimidating destinations than the Netherlands, but you still have to start living the moment you arrive and that’s where the Holland Handbook is worth it’s considerable weight.

You might already know some Dutch people and be familiar with their customs or maybe you have a basic grasp of the language, but where do you start with everything else?

Bicycle Mania

Xpat Media €19.90
Author/Photographer: Shirley Agudo

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The title and cover picture promise an eccentric and lighthearted peek into the Dutch love affair with all things on two wheels. What you get is a chunky little picture book with some nice photos and a few pages of bicycle facts and trivia.

If you’ve ever wanted to know how many bicycles there are in Holland (approximately 18 million), or that there are 29,000 kilometers of cycle paths throughout the country, then this might titillate.

Dutch Ditz - Manners in the Netherlands

Reinildis van Ditzhuyzen

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If you’re planning a move to the Netherlands or you’ve recently arrived then this compact little Dutch Ditz is just for you.

A swift and entertaining read, it cuts straight to the chase with everything you need to know about the Dutch family living next door and their weird and wonderful language, habits and customs.

A Dictionary of Dutchness

DutchNews.nl €12.50

Out of print

The Dutch language can puzzle at the best of times but throw in an acronym or abbreviation and you’re suddenly faced with a riddle, wrapped in a mystery and deep-fried in breadcrumbs.

What hope have we uninitiated English speakers got if we can’t tell the difference between a BOB and a TSB? Enter A Dictionary of Dutchness.