Children's books
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Freundebuch: Nella Nixe M. Freundinnen & Fr. (Wendepaill.)
German, Monika Finsterbush
I (34) am keeping a friendship book again – and I love it!
21.8.2026
Translation: machine translated
Pictures: Natalie Hemengül
Be a child again? I'd rather not. However, certain aspects of the past do hold a certain appeal for me. For example, the good old friendship book. I'm advocating for a comeback!
Would you like to sign it? I am asked shyly. My You bet! comes out like a shot from a water pistol. Then, at home, the pressure sets in. I want to make my pages as creative as possible. Clever answers with the perfect pinch of humor and in the most beautiful handwriting possible are required. It's best if I write with my new glitter pen right away. A cheeky photo is a must, too. Maybe the one with the fast sunglasses? I look like a cool macaroni in that one. What do we think about dolphin stickers? Hmm, let's see what the others have come up with first...
Sweet! Typical Sarah. Shaking my head.
A mocktail of emotions
As a child, I was allowed to immortalize myself in many a friendship book. And, of course, I put my own into circulation, too. By Diddl. Or was it Pimboli? I may not remember the design well, but I remember the feelings it evoked all the more.
Would you like to sign it? I ask shyly.
The answer comes promptly: You bet!
Then it's time to wait and drink Capri Sun. Waiting is boring.
One day, two days. A week? Step on it, sister!
Once the book is back, the anticipation bubbles out of me like carbonation from a shaken bottle of Globi champagne. But I only read it when the recess bell rings in sweet freedom. Otherwise, there's trouble.
🔔 Riiiing! 🔔
Off to the wooden bench and quickly flip through it! A few classmates look curiously over my shoulder.
Sweet! Typical Anna. Shaking my head.
Then a searching look around the room and the big question: Who's next?
Almost like in the old days. Maybe even... better?
Today I ask myself another big question: When did we stop being so cool?
Ah, yes! When our friendship books fell victim to the digital age.
Netlog. Facebook. Instagram.
I want to go back. But is that even possible? It's quick to order, the friendship book. Not a boring one. Not one in beige "for adults". Mine has a mermaid swimming on it. I love mermaids. Rainbow-colored sequins in the shape of a shell are also included. Perfect!
My book goes on a journey – and returns with the reliability of a boomerang. Do you know what else has returned? The joy I felt back then.
It may be my imagination, but as a 34-year-old, a friendship book like this is even more fun than it used to be. Perhaps because my eyes and those of my loved ones sparkle a little more at the nostalgic component than those of my classmates back then. But perhaps also because, as adults, even the supposedly most banal questions demand more introspection from us than we would have expected.
For editorial colleague Laura, who immortalized herself in my book, the homework was akin to a "little analog break." An exercise that, in addition to its playful elements (for example, coloring in fish), certainly also has existential depth. Especially the question What do you want to be when you grow up? is answered by Laura today with less naivety than in the past. "You automatically reflect on whether you have become what you once imagined." Or where you see yourself in another thirty years.
Slowly but surely, my book is filling up. With entries through which I get to know my friends a little bit better – and they do, too. With entries that open a tiny window into a carefree time, whose lightness I can still tap into today with a bit of naive optimism. At least for a smiling shake of the head – or two.
Header image: Natalie Hemengül
Natalie Hemengül
Senior Editor
Natalie.Hemenguel@digitecgalaxus.chAs a massive Disney fan, I see the world through rose-tinted glasses. I worship series from the 90s and consider mermaids a religion. When I’m not dancing in glitter rain, I’m either hanging out at pyjama parties or sitting at my make-up table. P.S. I love you, bacon, garlic and onions.
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