May 30, 2022
Originally published in 1999, Dutch author Van de Vendel crafts a sensitive portrayal of sexual awakening and queer first love set in Knoxville, Tenn. in this earnest novel, originally published in 1999. When Dutch Tycho Zeling meets Norwegian Oliver Kjelsberg, both 18, on their way to be counselors at an international summer camp, the two become inseparable. During a swimming excursion, Tycho considers that he might be gay, citing his blossoming crush on Oliver, despite never having had feelings for boys prior. With a fellow counselor’s encouragement, Tycho and Oliver giddily launch a tender relationship. After a camp leader warns them to be less obvious with their affections, Oliver convinces Tycho to sneak out, which leads to their employment termination. Instead of returning to Amsterdam, Tycho follows Oliver to Norway, but Oliver’s sudden emotional distance causes their relationship to falter. Their opposing internal journeys, including Oliver’s straightforward interpretation of his own queerness (“I’m just Oliver.... And Tycho Zeling from the Netherlands is the person I want to be with”) and Tycho’s earnest questioning, are thoughtfully examined. Van de Vendel’s compact, deeply introspective tale follows a sedate pace, and the narrative’s subdued approach to conflict allows the boys’ tentative identity exploration to flourish sans traumatic upheaval. Ages 12–up.
Starred review from May 1, 2022
Grades 9-12 *Starred Review* Weary of people asking about his plans for the future, 18-year-old Dutch teen Tycho decides to take time off and go to America to work for a month at a camp for international children. At the Amsterdam airport he meets Oliver, who's from Norway and also working at the camp. The two sit together on the flight and by the time the plane lands, they've become fast friends. A week later, they become much more. Shortly after this, the teens are expelled from the camp--in part because of their relationship---and Tycho flies to Norway to be with Oliver, whose mother is on vacation, giving the boys the house to themselves. At first their time together is idyllic, but then something unexpected happens. In its wake, Tycho decides to take action, but will his decision threaten the boys' relationship? This superb novel is beautifully written ("a few stars here and there, scattered glitter in someone's hair"), with apposite mood and tone as well as unforgettable characters that make the story a richly realized exercise in empathy. First published in the Netherlands, this book has become a classic in Europe. It should absolutely become the same here.
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Starred review from March 1, 2022
The heated beginnings of an international queer romance. Tycho Zeling has never really thought about the course his life should take. Perhaps that's why he makes the sudden decision to take a gap year after high school and spend his summer at an international youth camp in Knoxville, Tennessee. In the Amsterdam airport, the Dutch teen happens to meet up with a fellow junior counselor who is headed for the same camp--Oliver Kjelsberg from Norway. The two strike up a fast friendship and end up sharing a tiny supply closet as their camp housing. After Tycho awakens to his feelings for Oliver, what follows seems fantastically inevitable. The boys' romance rushes along largely in private until the camp director tells them they need to be more discreet. Even though the majority of the staff support them, Oliver and Tycho decide they would rather leave than live inauthentically. They depart for Oliver's empty house (his mother is on holiday), where Tycho now has the privilege of seeing his boyfriend in his natural habitat, but he still cannot find a place for himself. Dutch author van de Vendel's writing is poetic, intensely emotional, and sensitively philosophical in this beautiful translation by Rault. This book, originally published in 1999, is described in the author's note as standing in defiance of the old trend of depressing, fatalistic queer literature; it leaves readers with an open ending that leans strongly toward the optimistic. An enduring story populated with endearing characters. (Fiction. 14-18)
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