Looking for popular Dutch children’s books? These five (series) should definitely be on your bookshelves.
We have a lot of books in our house. Books generally escape my rare but thorough decluttering frenzies. We have filled our bookshelves with both English and Dutch books. The following five series of books have been wildly popular in our house over the years.
Nijntje
If you live outside the Netherlands then you know Nijntje as Miffy. I wasn’t really a fan of Miffy, but since having children I do appreciate the magic of Nijntje. The series is a fun read for the little ones because of the rhyming language.
The books are written by Dick Bruna who is just about a household name in the Netherlands. I’d be surprised if there’s a Dutch adult alive who doesn’t know his name. There’s even a Miffy museum to visit here.
You can find a Miffy book for just about every topic and any occasion you can think of so they always make great gifts.
My favourite is actually a book my husband gave me: translated it means “the writer”.
I’m not sure how far Miffy has travelled around the world so let me know in the comments if she’s made it to your neck of the woods.
Tip: When my kids were younger we had this Miffy Hide and Seek game and the boys LOVED it! ( My sons are now 19, 16 and 15 – but the thought of this game still makes me smile!)
Dolfje Weerwolfje
I’d go as far as to say that Paul van Loon has made his mark on the Dutch children’s book market in a way that no other Dutch modern time writer has. Dolfje Weerwolfje is a national reading pastime. The Dolfje Weerwolfje stories follow the adventures of a boy who changes into a werewolf three nights a month – and a white werewolf wearing glasses at that. There are many adventures to follow and my children worked their way through the entire series.
There’s a movie, and more merchandise than you could ever hope to collect, should you be so inclined.
In addition, the series is also available in English and we collected the series second hand from various sources. In English, the books are known as Alfie the Werewolf.
Jip en Janneke
My youngest used to be nuts about Jip en Janneke.
Every night papa had to re-read the adventures of the two Dutch kids who live next door to each other. And spare him a thought, this is the third time around because my eldest two worked their way through the series too.
Written by Annie M. G. Schmidt, and illustrated by Fiep Westendorp, these tales are classics for sure. Despite being published in the 1950s, Jip and Janneke are still the best known children’s book characters in the country. And don’t forget the animals: Takkie (a dog) and Siepie (a cat). Hema is all over Takkie, so head to Hema if you love Takkie as much as the rest of us.
The illustrations are black and white and certainly iconic – and some of the books are available in English, with even a complete bundle in one book!
Pluk van de Petteflet
I couldn’t mention Jip en Janneke without talking about Pluk too. Plus’s adventures are written and illustrated by the same team as Jip en Janneke. It has to be said that Pluk is almost as iconic as Jip and his friends.
Pluk van de Petteflet tells the tale of a boy (Pluk) who rides his little red engine around looking for a place to live – he hears of a room free in the Petteflet tower and promptly moves in. He soon makes lots of friends to have lots of adventures with.
Pluk has also been translated into English – known as Pluck – and his adventures can be read in Tow-Truck Pluck.
Dummie de Mummie
Tosca Menten is the author of this hugely popular series of books. She started the series in 2009 and published a Dummie the Mummie book every year since up to 2020.
A mummy called Dummy is the star of a series of adventures.
Whilst the entire series is (obviously) available in Dutch, at least the first two books of the series are also available in English.
Over to you
Which Dutch books are popular in your home?
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