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The Xenophobe's Guide
to the Dutch
by Rodney Bolt
A guide to understanding the Dutch that goes
beyond the tulips and windmills to reveal their real
personality and peculiarities.
The
Xenophobe's Guide to the Dutch
is now available on Kindle
CLICK HERE FOR KINDLE
STORE UK
CLICK HERE FOR
KINDLE STORE USA
| It's all in
your mind |
| The spirit of tolerance
does constant battle with the ghost of Calvin
for control of the Dutch psyche. Few Dutch
people go to church any more, but they don't
need to. Inside every Hollander's head is a
little pulpit containing a preacher with a
wagging finger. |
| Going Dutch |
| This is the
nation that once sold scrapers for getting the
last remnants of the film of buttermilk from the
inside of the bottle. The Dutch 'think with
their pockets'. Parsimony is not an
embarrassment, but a virtue. |
| Culture
vultures |
| The Dutch are cultural
magpies. They keep a beady eye on other people's
cultural trends, and are swift to snap up
sparkling new fashions. This means that rather
than producing an indigenous culture, they have
become voracious consumers of everybody else's -
true Europeans, whose cultural fads and fancies
know no borders. The Netherlands acts as a giant
cultural sponge. |
| Double Dutch |
| For the Dutch, the other
side of the question is as important as the
question itself. Dialogue is the lubricant of
tolerance, and the essential ingredient of
dialogue is 'Yes, but...'. |
| This guide to the Dutch is the
best book I've read about us (yes, I'm Dutch) in
many years. None of your clogs and windmills
fairy tales, no boring statistics either, but a
pretty accurate insight into the Dutch Society
and the Dutch ways. It's a funny and
tongue-in-cheek book, that very often had me
laughing out loud and saying things like, 'Come
on, we don't do things like that!', only to
realise a few seconds later that we do. |
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Amersfoort, Netherlands
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| This book is right on the money,
trust me, I am 100% Dutch. When I read this book
it makes me laugh. It is very accurate and
doesn't give you the average American
impression. This book made me proud to be Dutch. |
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New York, NY and Amsterdam,
Netherlands
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| Must read for anyone
visiting/living in Holland. In preparation to
move to Holland I decided to get this book, it
gave me a great overview of what the Dutch are
like..... my friend who has been living in
Holland for 2 years was crying with laughter:
'This is exactly what they are like!'. This is a
good fun look at other nationalities. I am going
to see what the author has to say about us!!!!!!
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London, UK
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| If I were a cabaret artist or
stand up comedian, I'd just get up and read
these books to the audience as they would bring
the house down. |
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Het Parool (Holland)
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| An enlightened new series, good
natured, witty and useful. The Xenophobe's
Guides to different nations deserves a real
cheer. |
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The European
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Nationalism and Identity
Character
Attitudes and Values
Happy Families
Manners and Behaviour
Leisure and Pleasure
Drinking and Eating
Custom and Tradition
Sense of Humour
Culture
Systems
Culture
Systems
Business and Commerce
Government
Language |
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| Author: Rodney Bolt |
| Format: 96 pages,
pb |
| Published: 15/07/08 |
| New edition: |
| Price: £4.99 |
| ISBN: 978-1-906042-28-8 |
| Online eBook. Click on
button below to sample. |
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