I saw one of his horse books in dutch...I think it was this one, but it might have been Rien Poortvliet's Horse Book...anyway, it was georgeous and I've longed for it ever since. Beautiful colorful illustrations, funny side notes, sketches and paintings of everything from little shetlands to beautiful draft horses...it's the most beautiful horse book I've ever seen. He is amazing, and this would make a wonderful gift. It's on par with the Noah's Ark book, although I like this one even better.

This is a really good book. The artist has a great appreciation of animals and the way they live. It is sad that it is not in print. I believe that the Authors name is actually 'Rein Poortvliet' not 'Piet Poortvliet'.

I originally bought this book for my Son back in 1997, and read it to him every night before he went to sleep. He would listen intently, until the Sandman flew by, sprinkling magical sleeping sand into his eyes, there was a faint smell of donkey, as I crept out of his room.
It's a must read for children under ten.

Rien Poortvliet's "Daily Life in Holland in the Year 1566" contains beautifully done sketches and paintings. They are truly extraordinary. The writing is also very interesting as he weaves history and daily life in an appealing fashion. However, I have found that some of the content of the book is inappropriate for a family. There are more than several pages of nudity and explicit portrayals of both instruments used for torture (in order to extract a confession of sorts) and the torture procedure itself. This has made it impossible for us to keep as a family coffee table book. I regret this but realize that it is an inappropriate book for our family with younger children. Some may certainly argue that this was life in 1566 Holland and while that may be true, it is also true that murder and other heinous crimes are part of life in all of history. Still, is there a need to portray them in this fashion? I think not. Perhaps the artist/writer could have alluded to these facts of life without the explicit visual reminders...

DAILY LIFE IN HOLLAND IN THE YEAR 1566 is a graphically and beautifully illustrated book by Rien Poortvliet--a gifted Dutch artist with a talent for visualizing past times and bringing them to life. Many of his illustrations contain disturbing content--people hanged and still dangling from the gallows, miscreants tortured and locked in cages, children and adults deathly ill and/or starving. In 1566, the Dutch were struggling with the Spanish for control of the Netherlands and the aftermath of war is not pretty.

However, many of Poorvliet's pictures also depict everyday scenes concerning the more pleasant side of life. The viewer is shown ships at sea; horses carrying soldiers and pulling plows; all kinds of housing--floorplans to facades to fully formed buildings; clothing of the various classes including the elaborate headgear of wealthy, deftly wrapped scarves, and helmets; household implements such as lanterns, pails, cooking pots, and candle holders; farming tools; vegetables and meats; and plenty of rural scenery comparable to the works of Ruysdael.

Poorvliet's DAILY LIFE IN HOLLAND is based on information he collected from court records and other sources and tells the story of several members of a family over the course of one year. Poortvliet's earlier illustrative tale, IN MY GRANDFATHER'S HOUSE vividly depicted life in Zeeland over several centuries. I actually liked IN MY GRANDFATHER'S HOUSE better than LIFE IN HOLLAND because he portrayed history by tracing his own ancestors back through past generations. First he imagined his father's life, then his grandfather's life, then his great-grandfather's life, etc.

Poortvliet's books provide a wonderful way to visualize life in past times...

It amazes me that you can get a book as stunningly beautiful and engrossing as this for such a price! Every detail of life seems to be covered here, from getting dressed to bathing (or lack of it) to rats, eating, etc. I don't know which is better, the perfectly detailed drawings or the text descriptions of everything. I didn't think at first I would like the book, as I prefer his ones on animals, but I wasn't disappointed!

I didn't really enjoy this book as some of Rien's other work. Don't get me wrong, it's still wonderful artwork, and a bargain at the price here. If you are like me and have to have ALL his books, by all means, get it. But if you are trying to choose between this one and some of his others, like Dogs or Life in Holland, pass on this book.

The Farm Book is done wonderfully with great art. It will remind many people that have left the Netherlands and now live overseas, of the many small details of Dutch Farm life. The expressions on the faces of the typical Dutch farmers are rendered as only Rien could do it. Farms, animals, vegetation, it all is portrayed the way we used to see it around us, when living in that small country. Old farm tools can be seen as well. There is a variety of things all related to the old fashioned farm, and of course his text is humorous. This book is great!!!

This charming book is one of my favorite
by Wil Huygen and Rien Poortvliet. The beautiful
illustrations and "year in the life of" format
make this a fun book for everyone! The vignettes
that accompany the pictures are great, and
while the book doesn't fit together well, each
month is charming, and they will make you feel
like you are really there with
Peter and his family. I reccomend
this book to anyone interested in wee folk.

This book is a wonderful "everything you could possibly need to know" guide to gnomes and their lives. The illustrations are darling, they capture the true "little people" spirit! This book is a must have for anyone interested in Faery-kind!