Your vacation reading list

Maybe what I like most about vacation is that I can read a lot. And by a lot, I mean a lot. I pack at least seven or eight books in my suitcase for a two-week vacation. The only problem is that I don't like e-readers. I already spend enough time behind a screen in my daily life, and it always gives me a bit of a headache, not to mention that you can't see much in the sun. So I lug around kilos of books. And then I just hope that I've picked the right books. Often, I read ten pages of a book at home in advance to make sure that I'm going to enjoy it on vacation.

 
To save you from excess kilos and disappointments, here’s my ultimate vacation book list for this summer:

• The Angel Maker – Stefan Brijs
  This book was published a few years ago, but it remains one of the most original and captivating books from the Dutch-speaking world. An obscure doctor arrives with his triplets in a small village near the tripoint. What is going on here? The local color, the intrigue... I'm sure you'll be fascinated from start to finish, just like I was.
• Babe, you got this – Martje Haverkamp and Emilie Sobels
  In this book, 20 young female entrepreneurs share their success stories and advice. I haven't read it myself yet, but it's ready on my vacation stack. Because I can't get enough of inspiring women who know what they want and won't let anyone hold them back. You go, girls!
• The American Princess – Annejet van der Zijl
  I read this book in one delightful lazy beach day. It's a biography of the American Allene, who went through many husbands and thus last names, and ended up as an intimate friend of the Dutch royal family. Does the book have a moral? Besides the fact that you should make the best of everything, it's mainly a delightful immersion in the world of the rich and famous from the last century.
• The Girls – Emma Cline
  This book is quite intense. I don't think you'll be able to relax under your palm tree afterward. But what an impressive book! ‘The Girls’ is about young Evie Boyd who ends up in a cult. The intense desire to be seen and to belong is portrayed brilliantly in this gripping novel.
• Be Invisible – Murat Isik
  I'm perhaps looking forward to this book the most this summer. The Turkish Metin grows up in a violent family, where he has learned to be as invisible as possible. And then a plane crashes into the Bijlmer flat where he lives. I'm very curious to see how this story will unfold. If you're looking for another nice book: ‘Lost Ground’ by the same author is fantastic!
• The Truth About the Harry Quebert Affair – Joël Dicker
  If you want a nice thick page-turner, then this is your book. 608 pages of delicious intrigue, in which young writer Marcus Goldman investigates his murder-suspected mentor Harry Quebert. ‘The Book of the Baltimores’ by the same author is at least as enjoyable to read.