Chaos In Mijn Hoofd

Brian heeft het uit gemaakt. Hij sms’t niet, hij mailt niet, hij skypt niet, hij hyvet niet. Kom op, Sas,. Delete zijn naam, delete zijn nummer, blokkeer hem, wis hem, vergeet hem. Vergeet hem. En gooi dat oorringetje weg.

Het is niet makkelijk om twaalf te zijn. En al helemaal niet als je ouders je de wereld overslepen zonder dat je daar om gevraagd hebt. Sasha en haar broers Sam en Nick gaan weer naar Indonesie, nadat ze een tijd in Nederland zijn geweest. Maar Sasha moet wel haar vriendje Brian achterlaten in Nederland…

Het leven begint eindelijk weer een beetje normaal te worden, totdat Sasha’s moeder ernstig ziek blijkt te zijn. Sasha wordt heen en weer geslingerd tussen hoop en vrees. Wat als haar moeder niet meer beter wordt? En wat kan ze doen om haar te helpen? Gelukkig dat er vrienden zijn. En broers natuurlijk.

Chaos in mijn hoofd is het vierde dagboek van Sasha Lasonder.
Lees ook: De vreselijke verhuizing, Marathon in de dierentuin, en Zoenen met een beugel.

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Brian doesn’t text, he doesn’t email, he doesn’t skype. Come on, Sasha! Delete his name, delete his number, block him, forget him.  And throw the earrings away.

It’s not easy being twelve. And certainly not if your parents drag you around the world against your will.  When Sasha and her brothers Sam and Nick return to Indonesia after being back in the Netherlands for a while, Sasha has to leave her boyfriend Brian behind in the Netherlands …

Life is finally getting back to normal, until Sasha’s mother gets seriously ill. Sasha is torn between hope and fear. What if her mother doesn’t get better? And what can she do to help her? Fortunately there are friends. And brothers, of course.

THIS BOOK IS AVAILABLE ONLY IN DUTCH

This is the fourth and last of the “Sasha” series.  It is also part of the “Sasha” triology available here:  https://www.bol.com/nl/p/sasha-trilogie/1001004011832886/

De Vreselijkje Verhuizing

Sacha Lasonder kan niet begrijpen dat haar ouders op dit idee zijn gekomen. Samen met haar drielingsbroers Sam en Nick doet ze er alles aan om de plannen van haar ouders te dwarsbomen. Tevergeefs. De datum van de verhuizing komt steeds dichterbij. Sasha houdt een dagboek bij. Ze schrijft daarin over het belachelijke plan van haar ouders, over de prikken die ze krijgt, over het afscheid nemen. En natuurlijk over hoe het is om in een ander land te gaan wonen. Helemaal niet zo vreselijk als ze van tevoren had gedacht.
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Sacha Lasonder can’t understand how her parents came up with this ridiculous idea of moving to Indonesia.  She and her triplet brothers Sam and Nick do all they can to thwart their parents’ plans, but their efforts are in vain. As the date of the move gets closer, Sasha keeps a diary, writing about her thoughts about moving to Jakarta, about the vaccinations she gets, about saying goodbye, and eventually, about what it is like to live in another country – which is not at all as awful as she had imagined it would be.

THIS BOOK IS ONLY AVAILABLE IN DUTCH.

Although it is out of print as a stand-alone book, it is available as part of the Sasha Trilogy:  available here:  https://www.bol.com/nl/p/sasha-trilogie/1001004011832886/

Marathon in de Dierentuin

Sasha woont in Jakarta en verveelt zich verschrikkelijk. Het is zomervakantie. Al haar vriendinnen zijn weg, en ze moet zich zien te vermaken met haar drielingbroers Sam en Nick. Dat valt niet mee. Haar vader bedenkt een plan. Ze kunnen met de hele familie de marathon gaan lopen. En daar kunnen ze dan ook samen voor oefenen. Vreselijk! Ze trainen in de dierentuin, de enige plek in Jakarta waar je kunt lopen en rennen zonder overreden te worden. Totdat de dierentuin sluit, omdat de vogelgriep is uitgebroken. En die is niet alleen gevaarlijk voor vogels…

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Sasha lives in Jakarta and is terribly bored. It’s summer vacation. All her friends are gone, and she only has with her triplets, Sam and Nick, for company.  Her father comes up with an idea –the whole family can train together to run a marathon.  How horrible!  They train at the zoo, the only place in Jakarta where you can walk and run without getting run over…at least until the zoo closes because Bird Flu has broken out. And it is not only dangerous for birds …

THIS BOOK IS ONLY AVAILABLE IN DUTCH

The second book in the “Sasha” series.  It is the only one of the four Sasha diaries that is not included in the Sasha Trilogy.

Journal d’une ado expatriée

Léa, une jeune adolescente de 13 ans vivant à Nantes, adore le théâtre et sa bande de copines qu’elle connait depuis toujours. Seule ombre au tableau, elle vit seule avec son père. Sa maman réside depuis six mois à Chicago pour des raisons professionnelles. Ses parents décident de réunir à nouveau leur petite famille. Pour cela, Léa et son père doivent quitter la France pour les Etats-Unis. L’annonce de cette nouvelle est loin de satisfaire Léa, une adolescente vive et déterminée à prendre sa vie en main. Cette histoire plaira tant aux jeunes ados rêvant d’ailleurs qu’à ceux directement concernés par la problématique de l’expatriation. Ils se reconnaîtront dans les états d’âme de Léa, ses humeurs, ses joies et ses peurs. Un livre pour les pré-ados et jeunes ados expatriés ou sur le point de le.

Thirteen year old Léa lives in Nantes.  She loves the theater and the friends she has known her whole life. The only downside is that she lives alone with her father because her mother has been working in Chicago for six months. When Léa’s parents decide to reunite their little family, she and her father must leave France for the United States – which is hardly good news to Léa, a lively teenager determined to take charge of her life.

This story will appeal to pre-teens and young teen Third Culture Kids, or about to become TCKs. They will recognize themselves in Lea’s feelings – her joys and her fears.

THIS BOOK IS ONLY AVAILABLE IN FRENCH

Johnny & Joshua Coming to Korea

Joshua is from the U.S. but he lives in Ghana.  His second best friend (after his dad) is his pet parrot named Johnny . But to his dismay, he has to leave Johnny behind when he and his dad move to Korea to be with his mom.

When he arrives in Korea, everything is very different. Joshua notices that everyone in Korea is staring at him and his parents! Most Koreans haven’t seen someone his color before and they want to touch his hair and take pictures with him. His mom keeps politely telling people not to touch him but Joshua feels like a star! Everyone wants to talk to him.

At the end of the story, Joshua confides in his parents that he still misses his parrot Johnny. They encourage him to take his soccer ball and meet new friends, which he does. He even meets a beautiful Korean crane who he asks to be his new best friend.

Besides covering themes of moving to a new country and settling in, this fantastic little picture book addresses the difficulty of having to leave much-loved pets behind.  And it stands out among TCK children’s books because it features an African-American family, and one that moves because of the mom’s job.

Reading level: age 4-8

Letters Never Sent

A memoir of a missionary kid processing her experience of growing up abroad, and especially of going to boarding school as a young child, “Letters Never Sent” takes the reader through a process of healing and seeking closeness with God. Written in the form of letters to her parents (the original title is more apt: “Letters I Never Wrote”), this is her story from early childhood through adulthood as the discovery that pain and purpose can co-exist begins to bring comfort & healing.

While unmasking some of the darker sides of missions and especially the family separations that often go along with it, Van Reken still honors the good in her experiences and how much she loves her and parents and loves God. She doesn’t look at her experiences in black and white but still gives helpful advice to those who are on a similar journey towards recovery and to parents of TCKs who don’t want to repeat her parents’ mistakes.