The hidden life of trees by Peter Wohlleben

I'm not gonna be a tree hugger, but Peter Wohlleben made me realise trees are definitely conscious in a way. They speak to one another, can feel it when an animal bites, measures the exact timing for fruition and help eachother. Just nog in a human way. They use the fungal networks for example. We still have no clue how this exactly works, let alone, knowing what plants really feel.

I would recommended this book for nature lovers, teachers and people that love learning

difficulty: 3.5 out of 5

Entangled Life by Merlin Sheldrake

It's been a while since I read this book, but I still remember it being incredibly interesting.That a fungi is the largest organism in the world, how some can survive in the deepest depth of the ocean and even in space. We are nothing compared to fungi.

Recommended for nature lovers and people who love learning

difficulty: 3.5 out of 5

Natuur amnesie

Unfortunately only in Dutch. Maybe there's a non-dutch version out there about it? Look up 'books on shifting baseline syndrome'.

This book is about the little knowledge we have about nature, how we gradually lose more knowledge about nature and therefore forget the importance of it. Pictures in this book show how we used to have whales in the north sea and fisherman catched fish as large as ourselves. The world we grow up in is the base for how we think the world is supposed to be. But this world has already changed greatly. One day our grandchildren won't even know things as polar bears existed. Slowly we digest this world as if it regenerates itself without giving anything in return.

Recommended for nature lovers and people who love learning

difficulty: 3.5 out of 5

Braiding Sweetgrass

Braiding Sweetgrass is about an American woman and professor with indigenous roots that explores her ancestry. She finds and shares this wisdom through this book. It was such an eye-opener too the world we live in and should live in. Humans are in need of communities that share with one another. Not a world about money and greed. Her ancestors knew that like no other and that formed every single thing about them. One example that stays with me is their language. In english and most European languages we say 'it' to inanimate objects like a tree or river. But to her ancestors a river or tree is alive. Therefore you can not call it an 'it'. A quote from the book: 'what if we came across a maple tree and, instead of saying, “It is beautiful!” We said, “She is beautiful!” Says Kimmerer, by saying she, we might not be so ready to reach for the chainsaw.'

Recommended for nature and language lovers, as well as people who like to learn more about our ancestors

difficulty: 2.5 out of 5. The beginning was difficult to understand but later it all came together

Never home alone

Never home alone is about all the small critters crawling around your house. And while this might sound creepy, it really shows how important these small creatures are for our own life. It makes you understand why it's bad too constantly clean your house too perfection and use anti-bacterial soap.

Recommended for bug lovers, and people who want to get rid of their fear of bugs and/or germs

difficulty: 2.5 out of 5.

The house in the cerulean sea by T.J. Klune

I think I read this one cause it was nominated for the 'Goodreads choice awards' in 2020 and maybe cause the introduction made it sound different from the standard fantasies. If I read fantasy, I want them too be feel new, different, maybe even a bit crazy. This book really had this vibe. Not only from the introduction but throughout the whole thing. The children made me laugh so many times and the characters are all incredibly special. It's also a gay story, which I normally don't choose from since I myself am not, but I really didn't mind here. Probably cause it really was just a small part of it and not a romance.

Recommended for fantasy/sci-fi people who don't mind reading about the typical child/teen drama and want a laugh or something different

difficulty: 1 out of 5

The ten thousand doors of Januari by Mark Lawrence

Kinda funny how I don't remember much about this book but somehow ends up in my list of favorite books. I remember binge reading this one during my burn out. I couldn't do much, but I could read stories. I remember this girl Januari going through all these doors which led through different worlds. I remember my love for the name Adelaide. And I remember how philosophical it actually, hidden behind those doors, really was. The ending made me awee.

Recommended for people who love fantasy and mystery

difficulty: 1 out of 5

The invisible life of Addie Larue

The simple village life was nothing for Addie. She hated it. But soon she would be married and that would be the end of it. She decided running was the only option and begged a mysterious figure in the woods for a different life. The figure gave her, her wish, but not without consequences. The rest of her life every single person she met, would forget about her the instance she walked out of view. Like she was never there to begin with. This story was incredibly intriguing. How would she survive? Where would she sleep? Who was the figure that helped her? How can this even end? The questions only kept coming.

Recommended for people who love a good mystery

difficulty: 2 out of 5. Might be a bit long and/or sad for some

The fault in our stars

I told one person about this book and that it was a must read, he said to me'Oh but it's a love story, I'm not a fan of romance', I told him it's definitely not a Romance. It's about death and the philosophical questions that come with it. This story bombarded me with constant philosophical questioning, quotes, poems and art. One example about a character and his cigarettes: “I’ve never lit one. It’s a metaphor, see: You put the killing thing right between your teeth, but you don’t give it the power to do its killing.” Every single page is fire like that.

Recommended for people who love philosophy

difficulty: 2 out of 5. Not for people who have nothing with philosophy (obviously)

Where the crawdads sing

I felt incredibly close to the girl in the book. She grows up abandoned by her family, known as 'the marsh girl' by the village in a little house away in the marsh. She only goes to the village to get something to eat. But slowly also learns what nature can offer itself. She becomes a lone wolf hiding in nature learning every plant and creature within her marsh. Because of my love for nature and foraging I could easily resonate with this story and the girl itself.

Recommended for nature lovers

difficulty: 2 out of 5. Might be a bit too sad for some

The institute - Stephan King

The institute is one of my favorite Stephan King books. The story brings you to a large facility where special kids are being held by the state. While the state experiments on them and keeps a very close watch, they try too find a way out.

Recommended for Stephan King and super power fans.

difficulty: 1 out of 5

Duma Key - Stephen King

Duma Key is quite a large book from Stephan King. And I do think the large beginning before the main character goes too this island, could have been completely removed. But then things get interesting. The character (yeah I forgot his name) picks up painting which seems to do some very wild things. Too himself and the world.

Recommended for Stephan King and thriller fans.

difficulty: 2.5 out of 5. Cause it's a large book and boring large beginning.

The idiot Brain - Dean Burnett

If you always want to read to learn but find it difficult this one might be for you. The idiot brain is funny and recognizable. From simple things like how we keep forgetting things when we enter another room too why people have memories of something that never happened. Dean Burnett really makes you think; 'hah, what an idiot brain'. I still think and talk with people about little snippets from this book years after reading it.

Recommended for people who love learning but find it difficult

difficulty: 2 out of 5