9 - Donna Tartt in the Netherlands

Donna Tartt has written a new book. It won't be published in another month or so - in English that is - but it is already available in Dutch. Apparently, there are strong bonds between her and her Dutch publisher De Bezige Bij, in the person of Robbert Ammerlaan. What is it that Dutch publishers do that writers allow them to publish their novels in Dutch before English? John Irving (also De Bezige Bij) and Nicci French (Ambo/Anthos) do the same: first a Dutch publication, then an English one. Strange. But never mind.

Yesterday, I was at the Stadsschouwburg in Amsterdam, where Donna Tartt's latest novel Het puttertje (The Goldfinch) was presented. I had won tickets through Facebook, so luckily I didn't have to pay a pricy 50 euros (however, this did include the book). Robbert Ammerlaan held an introduction, Kim van Kooten and Jacob Derwig (two Dutch actors) read some pages of her first two books (I really liked Derwig's reading!), and then, finally Donna Tartt appeared on stage. First, just a silhouette behind a curtain, and then 'live' as she was first hugged by Robbert Ammerlaan and then being interviewed by Arjan Peeters. My God, she is tiny (she is only 1.52 metres)! Especially, when seeing her next to Arjan Peeters with his long gangly legs, big feet, and trousers too short. I always find she looks a bit like a schoolmistress, stern and rigid, wearing rather old fashioned clothes. But when she starts talking, she opens up and is really very friendly and intelligent. Peeters didn't have any spectacular questions for Tartt, but maybe this just wasn't the time and place for it. Something that bothered a lot of people in the audience though, was that Peeters told us so many details about her book. I'd rather read the book and find them out myself, thank you very much. 

Anyway, I really liked seeing Donna Tartt in person and hearing her talk about her new novel. The book sounds really interesting. Last Saturday, it was reviewed in one of the best Dutch newspapers De Volkskrant; it got five out of five stars. I'm really looking forward to reading my signed copy!

8 - Forest fruity cadillacs

This liquorice is just the best candy ever. It tastes nice, it's got three different flavours in one package (strawberry, cassis and cherry), and they're shaped as cool cadillacs. And: no artificial colouring. Yummy :-)

7 - Trail running

"Trail running is a sport which consists of running and hiking over trails. It differs from road running and track running in that it generally takes place on hiking trails, often in mountainous terrain, where there can be much larger ascents and descents." (Wikipedia)

Unfortunately, we don't have mountains in the Netherlands. But we do have a couple of hills. Three of them are higher than 300 metres, only just, and they are about as far from my house as you can get. So our trails are pretty flat and consist of shell paths, riding tracks, and narrow trails through woods, heath and dunes. I run through small woods where you can hear the traffic passing on the roads nearby. It's all I've got and to me these trails are far more interesting than asphalt roads that run through suburbia.

I like running very early in the morning when it's quiet and all you can hear are birds and the sound of your feet hitting the ground. It smells nice as well, especially when it has rained, and there are all these lovely variations of the colour green, especially when the sun starts to rise. I often chase off some rabbits and twice I've seen a fox: reddish brown with a big tail. As I came around a corner my first fox was standing in the middle of the path, looking straight at me, not at all afraid, relaxed and curious, almost as if he wanted to ask me what I was doing in his territory. He looked me over and then slowly turned around and disappeared into the bushes. I had goose bumps all over and a big smile on my face. I felt kind of special meeting this fox, as if he allowed me to see him. I know that doesn't make sense, but I don't care. Anyway, seeing him really made my day. People say there are deer in my neighbouring woods as well, and I would love to meet them but so far I haven't yet. 

Trail running is something I would love to explore more, in different places and for longer distances. I know someone who just ran 100 kilometers through the Swiss mountains. Awesome...

6 - 10 Best books of 2011

It's been a while since I last wrote a blog, but as it's the start of a new year it's time to start writing blogs again. And since 'lists' and 'books' are almost always interesting, here's my top 10 of the best books I read in 2011. I have to admit that some were published in 2010, but I read them in 2011 ;-)

1. Jennifer Egan - A Visit from the Goon Squad
2. Jeffrey Eugenides - The Marriage Plot
3. Hari Kunzru - Gods without Men
4. David Vann - Caribou Island
5. Peter Hoeg - De kinderen van de olifantenhoeders
6. David Foster Wallace - The Pale King
7. Paul Murray - Skippy Dies
8. Riikka Pulkkinen - Echt waar
9. Colin Meloy - Wildwood
10.Lionel Shriver - So Much for That

5 - 12 Best books of 2010

As a top 10 might be a bit too common and boring, I thought I'd make it a top 12. Here's my very own and personal list.

12 Best Books of 2010

1. Scarlett Thomas - Our Tragic Universe
2. Emma Donoghue - Room
3. Haruki Murakami - 1Q84
4. Paul Auster - Sunset Park
5. Jonathan Franzen - Freedom
6. Nicole Krauss - Great House
7. Lee Rourke - The Canal
8. Shane Jones - Light Boxes
9. Philip Roth - Nemesis
10.David Mitchell - The Thousands Autumns of Jacob de Zoet
11.Tom McCarthy - C
12.Michael Cunningham - By Nightfall

2 books I haven't read yet, but am really looking forward to (maybe they'll even turn this personal top 12 into a top 14):

Paul Murray - Skippy Dies
Joshua Ferris - The Unnamed

4 - Our Tragic Universe, by Scarlett Thomas

Scarlett Thomas’s latest novel is as awe-inspiring and as much fun to read as her previous two books (The End of Mr Y and Popco). Thomas succeeds once again in dealing with rather serious and difficult subjects in such a way that they become understandable and interesting for almost everyone. In Mr Y the subject was quantum physics and deconstructionist theory. This time it is all about narrative techniques and the ‘storyless story.’ 

The story is told by Meg, who is a genre writer of science fiction novels  and a science book reviewer for a newspaper. She lives with her unemployed boyfriend Christopher and her dog B in a damp cottage in Dartmouth, trying to make ends meet. She may be in love with Rowan, a much older, married director of a maritime museum, but she is not yet sure. One day she mistakenly reviews a book about the end of time, which suggests  we are all already dead and that we will live forever. This  makes her look critically at her life again. When she makes a deal for her genre books to be made into a television series, Meg comes into a lot of money and rents a small cottage near  by the sea, in order to finally have a place to write her ‘real novel.’ Soon she and dog B start living there as well, leaving Christopher behind. Meg has been working on this real novel for years , in fact she has written -and deleted- hundreds of pages already. She hopes to finish it one day, but so far her deadlines have come and gone. She would like to write a novel that is different from traditional novels, and aims for a storyless story. 

I absolutely loved Our Tragic Universe! It is well written in a humorous and relaxed style that gets you into the story from the start. And it is educational as well! You learn a lot about narratives and stories, but also about science, esoteric books, and  even knitting. The characters are original (like Vi, a sixty something  anthropology professor wearing Dr. Martens who likes to swear) yet very true to life. All are intelligent and extremely loveable, and I found myself wishing they were my friends. All in all, a really good read, totally absorbing and unputdownable!

3 - Black tie beach

I really like these initiatives! They're fun and weird and different; and they cheer you up!
Last weekend several hundred people joined in a special mission organized by Improv Everywhere. They spent a day at Coney Island beach wearing gowns and tuxedos, and acting just as they would normally do when at the beach. So there was some swimming going on, some playing in the sand, etc. Katie Sokoler (a very cool and inspirational freelance photographer and street artist) was there and put some photographs on her blog:




To see more of her pictures, go to:
http://colormekatie.blogspot.com/2010/08/black-tie-beach.html

2 - Design your own sneakers

I've always wanted to do so, and now I have. At http://nikeid.nike.com/nikeid/index.jsp you can design your very own Nikes, using all your favourite colours and materials. You can have a text or symbol embroidered on them as well, your ID (for somewhat obvious reasons my ID is "CHRIS"). I love it! I have to admit it is more expensive than buying just your regular pair, but hey at least they are original!
This is what I designed. To see more pictures, http://nikeid.nike.com/nikeid/index.jsp?location=launchBuilder,locker,_6d6f674d6964303930322e2e,,215113667&sitesrc=nikeidEMEA_NIKEID_sfem.
Now, all I have to do is wait...

1 - The first 'wearable' magazine

I came across this site today http://t-post.se/index.php. If you like your t-shirts to be original, if you like to provoke interesting discussions, if you like to be surprised, and if you like a bit of fun, then you'll probably like T-post. It is actually a t-shirt magazine. Excuse me? Once every 5 weeks, subscribers get a t-shirt by mail. There's a news story on the inside and an artist's design on the outside. T-post works with different designers every time, and have different news messages to express, so as not to bore you.
I think it's a great idea, and really like some of the t-shirts.