Finished reading De omweg naar Santiago
book
Rated Multatuli: leven en werk van Eduard Douwes Dekker 8/10
Dik van der Meulen lijkt alle informatie die er over Multatuli/Eduard Douwes Dekker te achterhalen valt, achterhaald te hebben en heeft op basis van al die gegevens toch een bijzonder leesbare biografie geschreven. <br/><br/>Fijne studie van dit "vat vol tegenstrijdigheden" en zijn werk, tijd en omgeving.
Rated The Death of Ivan Ilyich and Other Stories 6/10
Rated Domela, een hemel op aarde 6/10
Ondanks een onzorgvuldige, wat gezwollen stijl, een regen aan uitroeptekens en overbodig persoonlijk commentaar ('terecht!') komen de persoon Domela Nieuwenhuis en zijn politieke leven redelijk uit de verf. Jan Meyers is geen briljant analist van de tweede helft van de 19e eeuw en wat Nieuwenhuis' historische betekenis daarin en daarna was blijft nogal onduidelijk.
Rated Homegoing 8/10
This is an ambitious book. Homegoing follows the descendants of two (half)sisters born in present-day Ghana in the 18th century. Following the two family lines, both tangled up in the history of slavery, Gyasi maps the experience of being black on both sides of the Atlantic. She manages to wrap a lot of history and a lot of pain in this novel. Downside of her broad scope and multigenerational approach is that her characters lack some depth, sometimes merely cardboard pawns pushed through the historical scheme in which their lives are embedded. Yet, to fit all this into just 300 captivating pages is quite an achievement.
Wants to read The Innocents Abroad, Or, the New Pilgrims' Progress
Rated Sprekend ik: Eenentwintig vertellingen 6/10
Rated A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius 6/10
Rated The Basque History of the World 8/10
Perfect read for a Basque country holiday. In the first chapters, Kurlansky skillfully channels the history of the start of the modern world through the story of the Basques, a people whose origin and language remain ever mysterious. The author is an obvious sympathizer of the Basques and the way they maintained their foothold over what is now south western France and a part of the North of Spain. As a result, he writes about these outward-looking-explorers-cum-ancient-culture preservers with great gusto. <br/><br/>Kurlansky displays what seems like a deep knowledge of his subject and world history at large (though his absurd claim that Spains population was the only one not consulted about European Economic Community membership does dent his authority as a former Europe correspondent). <br/><br/>It all gets somewhat less spirited towards the end but it remains a fascinating read. Also: gotta love the way he blends Basque recipes (writing about Spanish regional identies = writing about food?) into this romantic history of a tough and tiny nation.