Why am I passionate about this?

I'm an Englishman who fell in love with a 300-year-old former sausage curing hut on the side of a Slovenian mountain in 2007. After years of visits spent renovating the place, I moved to Slovenia, where I lived and worked for many years, exploring the country, customs, and culture, learning some of the language, and visiting its most beautiful places. I continue to be enamored with Slovenia, and you will regularly find me at my cabin, making repairs and splitting firewood.


I wrote

Dormice & Moonshine: Falling for Slovenia

By Sam Baldwin,

Book cover of Dormice & Moonshine: Falling for Slovenia

What is my book about?

My book is the true story of an Englishman seduced by Slovenia. In the wake of a breakup, he seeks


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The books I picked & why

Book cover of Slovenology: Living and Traveling in the World’s Best Country

Sam Baldwin Why did I love this book?

I had just moved to Slovenia when I saw this book in the window of a bookshop in Ljubljana. I immediately bought it and devoured the prose, going cover to cover in just two days. So little has been written about Slovenia in English, and I was hungry for insight into the country I would call home for many years. 

The book is a mix; it's part guidebook, part insightful essays on aspects of Slovenian life, such as education, the film industry, and publishing. It is also part personal memoir, with anecdotes about the author's wedding day, for example. 

I was looking for an overview of the country, and Slovenology certainly provides that. If you're seeking a light, functional, and interesting read about Slovenia, this book is a really good place to start.

By Noah Charney, Ivan Mitrevski (illustrator),

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Slovenology as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Slovenology is part memoir, part essay collection, part travel writing, and part guidebook. It is meant to act as a guide-in-hand while visiting Slovenia, but it can be read just as well from the comfort of your own home to give you a deep­er and more colorful sense of what it’s like to live in this remarkable, little-known country.
Slovenology combines an outsider’s perspective with the af­fection and local knowledge of a long-term resident: an en­gaging account of living in a singular country, and a punchy guide to traveling in it.

John Stubbs, award-winning literary biographer

I’ve got the key



Book cover of Forbidden Bread: A Memoir

Sam Baldwin Why did I love this book?

In contrast to Slovenology, this book digs deeper into Slovenia. A memoir by an American who moved to the country in the mid-1990s after falling for a handsome Slovene poet, Debeljak tells the story of her life as she takes on the head-twisting nature of Slovenian, and gets to grips with a culture that is often quite different to that of her homeland. 

Debeljak does not hold back on personal details, and I loved how she pours her heart into the story, sharing so much of her inner feelings with us. She also writes with humor and beauty. I think Slovenia has changed quite a lot since Debeljak's story, but it's still a great read for any Slovenia fan.

By Erica Johnson Debeljak,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Forbidden Bread as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

"[A] sunny, can-do look at intense culture shock. Debeljak makes a humorous, self-effacing guide to her own story and the only complaint I have is that I wish she’d told us more. I hope someday she gives us a sequel."—Christian Science Monitor ‱ "Witty and warm."—Kirkus Reviews


Forbidden Bread is an unusual love story that covers great territory, both geographically and emotionally. The author leaves behind a successful career as an American financial analyst to pursue Ales Debeljak, a womanizing Slovenian poet who catches her attention at a cocktail party. The story begins in New York City, but quickly migrates,



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Book cover of Fresh Eggs and Dog Beds: Living the Dream in Rural Ireland

Fresh Eggs and Dog Beds by Nick Albert,

Nick and Lesley Albert yearn to leave the noise, stress and pollution of modern Britain and move to the countryside, where the living is good, the air sweet, with space for their dogs to run free.

Suddenly out of work and soon to be homeless, they set off in search


Book cover of Slovenia - Culture Smart!: The Essential Guide to Customs & Culture

Sam Baldwin Why did I love this book?

Though I'd seen this book advertised, it took a recommendation from a Slovenian to make me read it. And I'm glad I did. Blake, a Canadian author who's lived in Slovenia for many years, has done an excellent job documenting what makes Slovenians–Slovene. 

It's an informative and frequently funny look at the country and its people. I found myself chuckling at many of the behaviors Blake notes that I had personally experienced myself.

With its undercurrent of dry humor and its overview of the people, this is a must-have book for anyone interested in understanding Slovenians.

By Jason Blake,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Slovenia - Culture Smart! as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Culture Smart guides help travellers have a more meaningful and successful time abroad through a better understanding of the local culture. Chapters on values, attitudes, customs, and daily life will help you make the most of your visit, while tips on etiquette and communication will help you navigate unfamiliar situations and avoid faux pas.


Book cover of Alpine Warriors

Sam Baldwin Why did I love this book?

As a fan of both Slovenia and the mountains, this book was a real treat. Written by a Canadian author, it’s an excellent account of the rise of Slovenian climbers during a golden era in the 1970s and ‘80s, who quickly became some of the most respected alpinists in the world.

Although it focuses on stories of high peaks, north faces, first ascents, and avalanches, it's set in a background of life in Slovenia, largely during the Yugoslav era. I found this insight fascinating, and it helped me to understand more about the Slovenian love of high places and what draws so many Slovenes to their numerous summits. A very enjoyable read–well-researched and written. 

By Bernadette McDonald,

Why should I read it?

2 authors picked Alpine Warriors as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Although Yugoslavia managed to avoid becoming involved in WWII until 1941, German armies invaded in April of that year and the Yugoslavian defense collapsed in less than two weeks. The state of Slovenia was split up amongst Germany, Hungary and Italy. Partisan groups, under the leadership of Josip Tito, managed to liberate the state by 1945, and then began a period of relative calm, under the benevolent rule of Tito. A Communist, he began to distance himself from the Soviet Union, looking to western economic models as Yugoslavia struggled to rebuild. During the thirty years following the war, a Yugoslavian



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Book cover of Pleasure to Purpose

Pleasure to Purpose by Elizabeth B. Splaine,

Part romance/erotica and part family drama, but all heart.

Scarlett loved horses since she was a child, living amidst the chaos of a family ravaged by mental illness. Years later, as she rebuilds a relationship with her often-absent father, she wrangles with needy clients, a manipulative mother, a nosy uncle,


Book cover of The Slovenians: 30 Years of Independence, Centuries of Awesomeness

Sam Baldwin Why did I love this book?

Slovenia might only have two million citizens, but they've punched above their weight. Author John Bills has superbly brought 100 of the most important to our attention. I loved reading about Slovenia's world-famous endurance swimmers, Everest skiers, scientists, musicians, poets, playwrights, and more.

Laced with dry humor, this book is a must-have for Slovenophiles who want to learn more about the Slovenian people who have gone well beyond their borders and made their mark on the greater world. 

By John Bills,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked The Slovenians as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

The Slovenians have given the world everything from postage stamps to pocket calculators via a conveyer belt of revolutionaries, rebels, artists and trailblazers, including men who decided it was a good idea to ski down Everest, swim the Amazon and all the rest. 'The Slovenians' is one big love letter to the men and women of Slovenian history.


Explore my book 😀

Dormice & Moonshine: Falling for Slovenia

By Sam Baldwin,

Book cover of Dormice & Moonshine: Falling for Slovenia

What is my book about?

My book is the true story of an Englishman seduced by Slovenia. In the wake of a breakup, he seeks refuge in his hinterland house, but what was meant as a pitstop becomes life-changing when he decides to stay.

Along the way, he meets a colorful cross-section of Slovene society: from dormouse hunters, moonshine makers, beekeepers, and bitcoin miners to a man who swam the Amazon and a hilltop matriarch who teaches him the meaning of being 'priden.' Struggling with Slovene, a language with grammar so complex it can cause brain damage, and battling bureaucracy, he explores the culture and characters of this underappreciated ex-Yugoslav republic, its wild beauty, and its wild animals. 

Book cover of Slovenology: Living and Traveling in the World’s Best Country
Book cover of Forbidden Bread: A Memoir
Book cover of Slovenia - Culture Smart!: The Essential Guide to Customs & Culture

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