Culture Shock! Belgium

This book has pleasantly surprised me by its accurateness and humor. The fact that the author was married to a Belgian was crucial in writing this book,although I must admit that he also did an enormous amount of work on the research of the history.This book would have received a 5-star rating if he hadn't so grossly neglected a very important area: the 67 km long coast line. The West-Flemish people are a breed on their own and have a myriad of customs and culture that decidedly differs from the inland. Considering the fact that the coast population in towns like Knokke are multiplied by 10 during the summer season, should give you an inkling of the diversity these people are accustomed to. Dialects are already different in pronunciation and colloqualisms in the next town of 3-5 km apart. The Belgian coast is responsible for the greatest income of the country, and the Flemish workers (in 't zwart) are some of the most industrious people around. If the royal family found the coast important enough to own several house along it, it certainly deserves more merit in this book. It is very apparent that the author's influence was dominated by his Brussels wife. Even some of the flemish words are not pronounced correctly or spelled right because of this inland influence (i.e.:ballekes, which is a typical non-West-Flemish word. the High Flemish (Dutch) term is much closer to the West Flemish "balletjes")A lot of the customs and habits only reflect a small part of the Belgian people, usually the ones in big cities.Still, buy the book, you'll learn more than you evfer want to know about this quaint country. Just make sure that when you visit it, make time away from all the museums and visit the flatlands of West-Flanders, and you'll come away with a whole lot more.

When reading this book I was really surprised by its accuracy and liveliness. The author succeeds in putting everything I would like to tell my non-Belgian friends in an extremely readable book (I finished it in one night). The point of view of the author is unique in the sense that he is a foreigner (British) but is married to a Belgian and has been living there long enough to know the small things of life. I would recommend this book to anybody remotely interested in Belgium. For those that are not, I can assure you that your interest will be certainly piqued by reading this book. For me this book is a great gift for a friend interested in my country.

As Belgian myself it was funny read this book which is humorous but too much accurate about many things that we know is true in our people but surprised to read in a book!Book is a very nice introduction to my country for people coming to live here and know about, but don't worry - not all the drivers are so bad and dangerous!

Mark Elliott has written a very entertaining - and if my Belgian friends are to be believed - accurate account of Belgian culture. Not a classic guidebook with lists of places to visit and restaurants to patronize, this book truly lives up to its title. The book contains a great deal of humor which makes the Belgians come alive for the reader. The book has definitely made me put Belgium on my list of places I wish to visit.