Edward van de Vendel

Cute poetry collection about athletes and not-athletes. Colorful illustrations. Fun word play. Lots of humor. (Read "I Did Warn You" about a mouse's advice to a cat. I laughed out loud and kids will, too.) Some of the poems go deeper, though, and will make children (and adults) think, like "A Magic Place"—the first poem—about clearing your mind during competition (kind of a zen moment) so that "Your greatest dreams can all come true, / but only ever without you." Issues such as prejudice show more are addressed in "The Bottommest" about preconceived notions and misplaced judgment concerning the abilities of others. I LOVED "Tree Sports" about the need for noncompetitive trees and the idea that not everything is a contest. "Stretch a Rope Tight" is about stretching a metaphorical rope over everything negative anyone has ever said about you and walking straight across. Beautiful.

Not all of the poems settled in my mind as nicely as those. "Frogs Win!" contains the scientific names of frogs. I think words should be pronounceable in poems, especially those for children. "Harry, or How a Cyclist Fell" seems to be a direct reference to Lance Armstrong's fall from grace. (Do kids really want to read about a "breath-doping meter" and his wife leaving him?)

Overall, it is a collection that will make a nice addition to my school library, particularly because of poems like "Here's the Idea" (cheering for the losers instead of the winners), "Zis Little Piggy" (follow your dreams), and my favorite, the title poem, "I'll Root for You": "I'll root for you. / Because this is my place, and I'm here to stay, / behind every finish and on every day, / no matter what, no matter when. / Now get up, get out there, / and go win again." Unconditional love and support. That's what's at the heart of this book. show less

I have to admit when I put my name in for this book I didn't even realize that it is a young readers book (ages 8 -12). I am a huge dog person and just liked the synopsis of the book.
A Dog Like Sam is a very beautifully written book and I am sure any young reader who loves dogs will love this book. At first I was hesitant because I was worried it might be a sad book like Where the Red Fern Grows or Old Yeller, you just never know with books about dogs. It took me awhile to read it because show more the more you read of the story the more it seems like something bad is about to happen. When I was 12 years old a dog appeared at my bus stop and when I got home that afternoon he was still there. I got lucky and my birthday was coming up so I was able to convince my mom to let me keep him. I had Bailey for 14 years and he was the best friend I needed during all those awkward growing up years. I was able to identify with the children in the book very easily. I feel even if a child reading this book hasn't been through a situation like this they will still be able to easily identify with the characters.
The illustrations for the book are very well done. There are a few that are a little creepy which I think fits perfectly with the story. It does have some sad and difficult situations that arise in the book but they are handled well and work out to have a really great ending.
I think my favorite part of the book would be the note from the author at the end. It gives background to the book that makes the story even better! I really hope they keep it at the end because I feel it is more powerful at the end. If they put it at the beginning I just don't think it would have the same effect.
Thank you Eerdmans Books for the ARC of this book. I really enjoyed reading it! show less

In The Dog That Nino Didn't Have, written by Edward van de Vendel, illustrated by Aton Van Hertbruggen, and translated by Laura Watkinson, we meet Nino and the dog that he doesn't have. This imaginary dog helps him cope with his father, an airline pilot who, due to the nature of his work, is always traveling. It is when his father gets him a dog in response to his obsession with his imaginary dog that Nino discovers that the real dog doesn't do any of the things his imaginary dog does, and show more is nowhere near as good at comforting him in his moments of sadness as his imaginary dog. In the end, he must balance his expectations with his needs.

The text is playful, leveraging contradictory language to explain the imaginary, where Nino both has a dog and does not have a dog. The illustrations are beautiful and noisy, and at times, help tell the story better than the words (in fact, the last several pages are nothing but pictures, which do a good job of portraying Nino's struggles, both with dogs and with his dad). In the end, it's a cute story suitable for children, especially animal lovers. However, in ways, it's also a powerful story, especially for parents who are constantly vacant from their children's life due to work and other commitments. Kids can learn Nino's lesson, but parents too should learn the lesson of his father. show less

The Days of Bluegrass Love was originally published in the Netherlands in 1999, and has only recently been translated into English. It’s a YA novel about two young men, one from the Netherlands and the other from Norway, who fall in love.

Tycho Zeling, from the Netherlands, is the main character. Just out of high school he’s a bit adrift - he hasn’t really decided what he wants to do with his life. So, rather than face life decisions for which he’s not really ready, he decides to get show more away for a while, and go to America to work as a camp counselor at a summer camp for international kids. At the airport he meets Oliver Kjelsberg, who is on his way to the same summer camp. The two form an immediate bond and end up rooming together as counselors.

As Tycho and Oliver realize that what they have is more than friendship the reaction from their fellow camp counselors and other camp staff is mostly positive. The summer camp has rules though, and the camp director asks them to “cool it”. Oliver resists conforming to those rules, taking Tycho to spend a night outdoors, away from the camp, which ends in their being expelled.

So the two decide to go back home to Europe. To Oliver’s home specifically, as his mother is away, and they can be together there for the rest of the summer. It’s when they arrive back in Norway that what started as a simple summer love story begins to run into reality, which may not be so kind to the pair.

The book is realistic. Tycho and Oliver are not perfect. They act like teenagers and sometimes they do dumb things. They move at different speeds in their understanding of their sexuality, their ability to come out (to others and to themselves), and their goals in life. It can be difficult to root for them as a couple, and it’s not totally clear at the end of the book whether theirs will be a summer love or something more lasting.

The book is short and fast paced, though it covers quite a lot of ground. This is a little frustrating and can seem like the unnecessary constraints of a YA novel. But it’s also van de Vendel’s skillful way of unwinding his story. We are discovering Tycho and Oliver as they discover each other themselves, tumbling headlong through the summer. Is Tycho as mature (though undecided about his future) as he first seemed? Is Oliver as clear in his head about what he wants as he seemed to be at camp in America?

When I read reviews of the original Dutch version I repeatedly see references to the beautiful language in which the story is told. While I can’t testify to that, I can say that the English translation is quite beautiful itself. And the audiobook narration by Tom Picasso was perfect.

This is the first of four books in the Tycho / Oliver series, though the only one so far translated into English. If you are YA fan and looking for something different than the many “meet cute” LGBT love stories on the market right now I recommend giving this one a chance. I’m glad I did.

Rating: Four Stars ⭐⭐⭐⭐ show less