3.75 ( )

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 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 ⭐⭐⭐⭐ ( )

In 1999, eighteen-year-old Tycho wanted a change and a way to maybe find himself. So, he applied to be a junior assistant at an international youth camp in Knoxville, Tennessee. On his way there, he meets a Norwegian boy the same age, Oliver, who is also heading to the same camp as a junior assistant. The two immediately make a connection. Their bond grows as the summer moves along and not long after become a secret couple. But after a night out together they are evicted from the youth camp. Tycho follows Oliver home to Oslo. But Oliver still has another love, football (soccer), and he wants to get noticed. Will the love between Tycho and Oliver last between the desire Oliver has to be discovered?

The first part of the story at the camp was beautiful and I really enjoyed getting into those events and seeing how the boys got to know each other. Then the second part, I was feeling super unsure if both boys wanted the relationship… you could tell Oliver wasn’t as freely open about his relationship back home as he was in the States and I was feeling so bad for Tycho. The anxiety Tycho felt about his relationship with Oliver was well written and portrayed splendidly, I really felt my heart aching for him.

“It was as if he was being taken by the hand to see it all happening again. But this time he could also see he still hadn’t done enough. That he’d just been trailing along after everything. That he’d been running himself silly, like a stupid fullback”

This is a story about your first real love and what you would do to be with them… until you have to step out into the real world again and not “the honeymoon” love bubble.

The Days of Bluegrass Love is a great novel for teens and adults. It’s a quick read that will put you into summer camp and falling in love for the 1st time again.

I’ve seen there are more books in this series, and this is the first of them. I am very curious about the others and will be keeping my eye out for those to be translated as well.

* Thank you Levine Querido and Edelweiss+ for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review ( )

Zo beschrijf je je eerste verliefdheid en vrijen zonder dat het ordinair wordt ( )