I made a serious cultural and geographical error in my previous post about Dutch Girl: Audrey Hepburn and World War II. I picked up the print copy today at the library and late this afternoon I re-read Chapter 2, which I found difficult to absorb in an audio format.
To correct myself: No, Audrey Hepburn has no Belgian ancestry, although she and her family lived in Brussels for several years while she was a young child. Her noble ancestors were Frisian, and as the author points out, many Frisians, even today, do not consider themselves "Dutch," though they live within the Netherlands. But they are definitely NOT Belgian. Her grandfather and grandmother lived just outside of Arnhem, which is in the eastern part of the Netherlands, not so many miles from Germany.
Because Audrey was educated from age 6, for the next five years, in England, she experienced a very hard time when she went to live with her mother in the Netherlands, NOT in the Arnhem area, but in an area distinctly Dutch. She knew not a word of Dutch.
So I think that this corrects all the misinformation I loaded on you poor readers yesterday. The print copy definitely helped me through Chapter 2!
Reading Roundup - Autumn
8 hours ago
Wow, all those relationships are confusing. Good thing you were able to get a print copy. I have never even tried audio books but I suspect I would have a hard time following them. Although in some cases I have heard that fiction can be improved by listening instead of reading.
ReplyDeleteHi Tracy,
DeleteI can't listen to audio fiction at all, and especially not while driving! I do much better with nonfiction. The only exception are novels by Danielle Steel, who repeats important information as one reads along. I hate to admit that I've enjoyed a few of her books. She has a stable of writers writing for her, so it stands to reason that some will be more interesting than others. I know she has a bad rap, but several of her books have been very good, IMO.
My listening skills are nowhere near as good as my text reading skills. But I do love to listen to celebrity bios while knitting, for example.
No problem, Judith. Interesting to hear that her ancestors were actually Frisian. Must've been very hard for her living there and not speaking Dutch. These days they nearly all speak English, partly due to watching British TV, but not back then I supect. And anyway, whether they spoke it or not it wouldn't have been their everyday language.
ReplyDeleteEvidently her friends recall that she lived in a dream world and daydreamed during classes constantly. That's one way to escape the language barrier!
DeleteI think there is a movement in Germany (sort of half serious/half in jest) to reunite Friesland.
ReplyDeleteI understand the audio book confusion. I prefer to have the text available just in case, though that isn't always possible!
The idea to reunite Friesland, or maybe to resurrect it as being, at least, culturally independent of the Netherlands. I could see that.
DeleteAnd, yes, it would be ideal to have the text available as well as the audio. I sometimes am able to, but it would be great.