I am a big fan of all sort of ”Book challenges”, ”Read-the-world lists” and ”Absolutely must-read lists” and one day while my daily commuting, I got the idea to host a Bookclub at my place. I decided to invite one representative of a different country which literature and classics I don’t know and never heard of. As I work in an international company and have colleagues from around the world, having books from the four corners of the world was not an issue at all ):
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How to escape reality in a Dutch rainy day? Host a book club!
In the first place, I dropped an e-mail to all my potential guests and people started reacting with enthusiasm to come and share books from their respective homelands.
So, on this rainy Saturday afternoon, we were reunited around a cup of hot beverage eating a home-made tiramisu (Thanks, Masa!) talking about ”Books”.
Here is my selection of books from different countries that I collected during my first book club.
Promise at Dawn by Romain Gary (French: A La Promesse de l’aube)
This is an amazing French novel by Romain Gary. Considered as an autobiographical novel about Romain Gary’s childhood and the education his mother aimed to give him her entire life. It’s about a mother-son love and relationship based on his mother’s confidence in the bright future of her son. According to the narration, she was convinced that he will become a General or an Ambassador and in fact, he became an Ambassador. A real story that can shake all your perceptions and beliefs about parents-children relationships, nurturing and education. A must-read at least for me.
The novel was adapted in the cinema as well: Promise at Dawn
Beauty in the morning and other stories by the Kazakh autor Mukhtar Auezov
The second book is a compilation of short stories about life and lifestyle in Kazakhstan. Apparently, this book is one of the very few Kazakh books that have been translated into English. It’s considered as a classic in Kazakhstan and it’s mandatory to read it at school. Some of the stories are sad, but for those who do not know much about this country of extreme weather conditions, it’s a nice reading.
The Virgin Way by Richard Branson
Who doesn’t know this successful businessman and entrepreneur? He also wrote a few books on business and leadership. I would never consider buying one of his books, but as this one was recommended by one of the attendees of the Book Club, I just grabbed it! I read it for one week during my commuting time to work. So inspiring and cool at the same time! Well, it cannot be considered as a classic or high-level literature, but only reading it, was a great experience for me!
Time of Violence by Anton Donchev
As a representative from Bulgaria, I talked about ”Time of Violence” an emblematic well-known Bulgarian novel that shows Bulgarian lifestyle in one of the most beautiful mountains in the world – Rhodopes mountains during the Ottoman empire.
Net takogo slova by Denis Dragunskii
I am not sure if the book has been translated into English or not, but most likely not, however, this Russian book has been recommended for its short stories. It’s not a classic, neither a bestseller, it’s just a good book and can be read by people who learn Russian and want to practice. An easy-to-digest during a rainy afternoon!
Other books that have been recommended during the book club
1. I am Malala by Malala Yousafzai (well-known bestseller by the award-winner of the Peace Nobel prize)
2. Zuleikha opens her eyes by Guzel Yakhina (translated into English). Please read my review on the book here.
3. Cudo u Poskokovoj Dragi (2009) by Ante Tomic (Not sure if translated into English, but for those interested to know more about Croatia, could be a go).
Did you enjoy my review of my first book club: 5 ladies, 5 books and one tiramisu?
Thanks for reading!