Backman, Fredrik "Britt-Marie was here"

Backman, Fredrik "Britt-Marie was here" (Swedish: Britt-Marie var här) - 2014

This was my second book by Fredrik Backman. And my last. The first one was quite nice, funny, but I couldn't care for this one. I didn't like the protagonist, Britt-Marie because I'm not OCD even though I like order, I don't like football, so that didn't allure me, either. The story is described as "funny and moving", I couldn't find either.

This was a book club book, otherwise I might not have finished it.

We read this in our international online book club in February 2025.

Some comments from the other members:

"It scored pretty low by most others in the discussion.

Some commented that it felt more like a movie script than a real novel. Which makes sense as Backman's books have many of them been filmed both in Sweden and internationally. For me it was a nice light humorous read, maybe more like a fun summer read than real thought raising literature. This despite me hating the main character from the very start. I guess much of Backman's stories are like that, with quite stereotypical characters, and predictable plot and then an uplifting twist at the end. The timeline of the book felt familiar in terms of what was happening in small towns here in the Nordics in maybe 90-s or early 00s. Services being closed down and some neighbourhoods being quite poor. Not really something I believe can be saved by one determined lady and the community. But a nice thought."

From the back cover:

"Britt-Marie can’t stand mess. A disorganized cutlery drawer ranks high on her list of unforgivable sins. She is not one to judge others—no matter how ill-mannered, unkempt, or morally suspect they might be. It’s just that sometimes people interpret her helpful suggestions as criticisms, which is certainly not her intention.

But hidden inside the socially awkward, fussy busybody is a woman who has more imagination, bigger dreams, and a warmer heart that anyone around her realizes.

When Britt-Marie walks out on her cheating husband and has to fend for herself in the miserable backwater town of Borg—of which the kindest thing one can say is that it has a road going through it—she finds work as the caretaker of a soon-to-be demolished recreation center. The fastidious Britt-Marie soon finds herself being drawn into the daily doings of her fellow citizens, an odd assortment of miscreants, drunkards, layabouts. Most alarming of all, she’s given the impossible task of leading the supremely untalented children’s soccer team to victory. In this small town of misfits, can Britt-Marie find a place where she truly belongs?

Funny and moving, sweet and inspiring, Britt-Marie Was Here celebrates the importance of community and connection in a world that can feel isolating."

Fosse, Jon "Morning and Evening"

Fosse, Jon "Morning and Evening" (Norwegian: Morgon og kveld) - 2001

This was our international online book club story for July 2024.

I had found it after Jon Fosse received the Nobel Prize for literature and then suggested it to the book club. Since we all like to read books by  Nobel Prize winners, it was chosen as one of our books.

I have always loved Nobel laureates; there is hardly ever an author among them that I don't care for. And this last one is just the same. A fascinating story about the life and death of a man. A simple story about the passing of an old hardworking fisherman with a humble life. No embellishments needed, a plain reflection on an ordinary life.

Jon Fosse describes all this so wonderfully, his writing is fantastic. A well deserving winner of this most prestigious award.

This is only a novella, even the German translation has only about 120 pages but it is as big as many large books of 500 pages or more (my favourite stories).

Other readers were happy, as well. So, here are some comments:

"At first the writing-style was very offputting, as i am too literal to enjoy poetry and the roundabout way of writing. But then after half the book, I started to understand it, and really enjoyed how much feeling you could get out of the minimalistic text."

"The ending was just stunning."

"It started off annoying me with the style of writing.. the flow of thought, no punctuation... but then about halfway through I was just in awe of the skilful and atmospheric way the story was told."

"The translation to Swedish was a bit special, though, the translator had left a lot of words in the book that are nowadays considered part of the ancient-swedish, and not in normal use anymore."

To be honest, I didn't realize that until I heard this comment. Yes, some of the wording seemed old fashioned even in German but I just considered that the "Scandinavian way".

From the back cover:

"A child who will be named Johannes is born. An old man named Johannes dies. Between these two points, Jon Fosse gives us the details of an entire life, starkly compressed. Beginning with Johannes's father's thoughts as his wife goes into labor, and ending with Johannes's own thoughts as he embarks upon a day in his life when everything is exactly the same, yet totally different, Morning and Evening is a novel concerning the beautiful dream that our lives have meaning."

Jon Fosse received the Nobel Prize for Literature in 2023 "for his innovative plays and prose which give voice to the unsayable".

I contribute to this page: Read the Nobels and you can find all my blogs about Nobel Prize winning authors and their books here.

Hamsun, Knut "Growth of the Soil"

Hamsun, Knut "Growth of the Soil" (Norwegian: Markens Grøde) - 1917

For the Classics Spin #37, we received #8 and this was my novel.

So far, I have only read one book by Knut Hamsun, "Pan". That was part of our international book club. One of our members was from Norway, and Knut Hamsun was her favourite author. I liked "Pan", it's a great novel and probably a good one for a book club since it's not too large.

"Growth of the Soil" was just as great. Apparently, this gained him the Nobel Prize for Literature. You can tell that the author loves nature and what it does for us. In this case, Isak, the protagonist, comes to an area where nobody lives and which seems hard to farm. He makes something of it and becomes one of the richest man in the area after some others follow.

It's not just the story, it's the way the people are described, their hard work, their love of nature, their will to become more, also those who don't agree with that style of life.

It's a quiet story, a calming story. An epic story about a time long gone.

From the back cover:

"The epic novel of man and nature that won its author the Nobel Prize in Literature, in the first new English translation in more than ninety years

When it was first published in 1917, Growth of the Soil was immediately recognized as a masterpiece. More than one-hundred years later it still remains a transporting literary experience. In the story of Isak, who leaves his village to clear a homestead and raise a family amid the untilled tracts of the Norwegian back country, Knut Hamsun evokes the elemental bond between humans and the land. Newly translated by the acclaimed Hamsun scholar Sverre Lyngstad, Hamsun's novel is a work of preternatural calm, stern beauty, and biblical power - and the crowning achievement of one of the greatest writers of the twentieth century."

Knut Hamsun received the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1920 "for his monumental work, 'Growth of the Soil'". 

I contribute to this page: Read the Nobels and you can find all my blogs about Nobel Prize winning authors and their books here.

Top Ten Tuesday ~ Top Ten Plus Genre Freebie ~ Top Thirteen Scandinavian Books

 

 

"Top Ten Tuesday" is an original feature/weekly meme created on the blog "The Broke and the Bookish". This feature was created because they are particularly fond of lists at "The Broke and the Bookish". It is now hosted by Jana from That Artsy Reader Girl.

Since I am just as fond of them as they are, I jump at the chance to share my lists with them! Have a look at their page, there are lots of other bloggers who share their lists here.

This week, our topic is a Genre Freebie.

We have had many opportunities to share our favourite genres and I have taken plenty advantage of that. I have done Bookshop books, Classics (here, here, here, and here). Can you tell it's my favourite genre?), Dystopian literature, Epistolary novels, Love books (here and here), Nobel Prize winners, Travel literature (here and here). So, I was thinking to do travel books again, I have plenty of new ones. On the other hand, there are also many other genres or other types of books I love and then I was thinking about the next trip we plan, going to Sweden to visit Göteborg where my son studied. So, in the end, I decided to do Scandinavian literature.

I have read many books about Scandinavia (as you can see here) and so I had quite a choice. In the end, I decided to take the books that are written by a Scandinavian and take place in Scandinavia, though I had to omit one of my favourite books, "Out of Africa" by Karen Blixen (or Isak Dinesen).

So, here are my top thirteen Scandinavian books:

Fredriksson, Marianne "Hanna's Daughters" (S: Anna, Hanna og Johanna) - 1994
Gaarder, Jostein "Sophie's World" (NO: Sofies verden) - 1991
Gulbranssen, Trygve "Beyond Sing the Woods" (NO: Og bakom synger skogene) - 1933
- "The Wind from the Mountains" (NO: Det blåser fra Dauingfjell/Ingen vei går utenom) - 1934/35
Hamsun, Knut "Pan" (NO: Pan) - 1894
Høeg, Peter "Miss Smilla's Feeling for Snow" (DK: Frøken Smillas fornemmelse for sne) - 1992
Ibsen, Henrik "Peer Gynt" (NO: Peer Gynt) - 1867 
Jacobsen, Roy "The Burnt-Out Town of Miracles" (NO: Hoggerne) - 2005 
Lagerlöf, Selma "Sancta Lucia. Weihnachtliche Geschichten" [Christmas Stories] (S: Kristuslegender) - 1893-1917
Lindgren, Astrid "The Six Bullerby Children" (SW: Barnen i Bullerbyn) - 1947
Mankell, Henning "Daniel" (SW: Vindens son) - 2000
Petterson, Per "Out Stealing Horses" (NO: Ut og stjæle hester) - 2003
Sturluson, Snorri "Egil's Saga" (Icel: Egils saga Skallagrímssonar) - 1240
Undset, Sigrid "Kristin Lavransdatter" (NO: Kristin Lavransdatter) - 1920-22

I hope you can enjoy some Scandinavian stories.

🇩🇰 🇮🇸 🇳🇴 🇸🇪

Gulbranssen, Trygve - Bjørndal Trilogy (Bjørndaltrilogien)

Gulbranssen, Trygve "Beyond Sing the Woods" (Norwegian: Og bakom synger skogene) - 1933
Gulbranssen, Trygve "The Wind from the Mountains" (Norwegian: Det blåser fra Dauingfjell and Ingen vei går utenom) - 1934/35

These books were among the few hardcovers my parents owned and were therefore among the first ones I read. That was more than half a century ago now. When my parents died and we liquidated their house, my brothers decided that the books should be mine. I was very happy about them, because they are a nice memento of my parents and my love of reading, which I discovered early on.

The novels are considered a development, peasant, generational and gothic novel. Let's say it could pass as a tragedy. We also liked to watch the movies when they came on TV.

From the back covers:

Gulbranssen, Trygve "Beyond Sing the Woods" (Norwegian: Og bakom synger skogene)
"The story of three generations of an old-lineage Norwegian family making their life in the northern woods (circa 1750's.) Main themes are the struggle between tradition and innovation, the prejudices of pastoral society, and a study in human nature and man's ability to make peace with it."

Gulbranssen, Trygve "The Wind from the Mountains" (Norwegian: Det blåser fra Dauingfjell and Ingen vei går utenom) - 1934/35
"In this second volume of the trilogy, we meet Dag again, who is now slightly older. He is now Old-Dag. His son, Young-Dag, is married off to Adelheid Barre, an officer's daughter, something her urban office-holding family is not immediately thrilled about. But Old-Dag makes a grand impression on them at the wedding, and the objectors fall silent. Adelheid's life at the farm is different than she expected. Her marriage is especially difficult to comprehend. She grows close to Old-Dag, and finds much joy in his company and in long and deep conversations with him. Young-Dag is in many ways a stranger both to her and the family. A tragedy prompts him to run away from the farm, into the woods - all the way to Death Mountain. From there, nobody returns. But he does anyway, and the experiences become a turning point in the relationship between Young-Dag and Adelheid."

"Det blåser fra Dauingfjell" and "Ingen vei går utenom" was collectively translated under the English title The Wind from the Mountains.

Follett, Ken "The Evening and the Morning"

Follett, Ken "The Evening and the Morning" - 2020

I love the Kingsbridge series. This one is just as fabulous as the ones before this, or the ones that come after, chronologically in the story.

You can read these books in any order but if you haven't started, yet, I would recommend you start with this one. Then you see how everything develops. The small place called "Dreng's Ferry" is going to become a very important town called Kingsbridge and you can see over the years how England and the world grows, how lives change from one century to the next, well the next but one. There are always about two hundred years between the stories, nobody from the book before is alive anymore, nobody knows anyone from the book before. However, the families are known and once you get to know them, you can follow their destiny.

This one is especially interesting since it takes place about a thousand years before us. A whole millennium. We can see how much has changed - and how much hasn't. Impressive.

Everyone is depicted in the novel, good people and bad people, rich and poor, intelligent and not so intelligent, ambitious and cruel, crafty and talented, just like in real life.

Most times were hard, there have been wars all the time, all over the world, this time is no exception. They were different from our times but they were not any better.

You can't read the 900 pages in a couple of days but you'll be surprised how quickly you get through this story. The further you get, the less you can await the end. Just a brilliant book by an amazing author.

From the back cover:

"It is 997 CE, the end of the Dark Ages. England is facing attacks from the Welsh in the west and the Vikings in the east. Those in power bend justice according to their will, regardless of ordinary people and often in conflict with the king. Without a clear rule of law, chaos reigns.

In these turbulent times, three characters find their lives intertwined. A young boatbuilder's life is turned upside down when the only home he's ever known is raided by Vikings, forcing him and his family to move and start their lives anew in a small hamlet where he does not fit in. . . . A Norman noblewoman marries for love, following her husband across the sea to a new land, but the customs of her husband's homeland are shockingly different, and as she begins to realize that everyone around her is engaged in a constant, brutal battle for power, it becomes clear that a single misstep could be catastrophic. . . . A monk dreams of transforming his humble abbey into a center of learning that will be admired throughout Europe. And each in turn comes into dangerous conflict with a clever and ruthless bishop who will do anything to increase his wealth and power."

And here are the other books in the series:
"The Pillars of the Earth" (Kingsbridge #1) - 1989
"World Without End" (Kingsbridge #2) - 2007
"A Column of Fire" (Kingsbridge #3) - 2017

I wouldn't mind reading another book from Kingsbridge, either from the year 800 or 1800, no matter.

Jansson, Tove "Moominsummer Madness"

Jansson, Tove "Moominsummer Madness" (Finnish: Vaarallinen juhannus) - 1954

I hadn't read anything about the "Moomins" but I'd heard about them and seen their pictures everywhere. They're cute. I can only explain my ignorance of the books by the fact that we spent most of our sons' childhoods in England where they were not as popular as elsewhere.

So, I never read the "Moomins" as a child nor did I read them while my children were little. I suppose my perspective would have been a little different.

I read it with my online book club, all of us grown-ups, some of us with little kids, others with no kids or grown-up kids, like me. And a large number of Finnish members which is why this book was chosen, I guess. I quite liked it though I think I would have enjoyed it more if I'd read it with a child. Or maybe if I'd read the first book first. This was number 5 and the author assumed we know who is who and, even more important, what is what. So, the Moomins belong to the trolls, then there are mymbles, hemuls, fillyjonks, and a rat.

The Moomins live in a house in Moomin valley. When a volcano erupts, the valley is flooded and the Moomins have to seek shelter elsewhere. They find a theatre that they don't recognize as such since they've never seen or heard of one before but in the end they even present a play, even if somewhat haphazardly.

There is plenty of depth in the story, though, to be enjoyed by adults, as well. The characters may be eccentric but they seem to be just as "normal" as us human beings. Good writing and good psychology. The story is easy to follow yet not boring.

This was our international online book club read in March 2021.

Some thoughts by the members:

• I felt the book really uplifted my spirit, while we are living isolated from travel and much wild adventures.
• Some of the author's special ideals and characteristics came out well in the story, too, I think. 
• And the ending was hilarious with the totally ruined theatre.
• I found it very philosophical, positive, and quirky. 
  

From the back cover:

"When a flood sweeps through the valley, the Moomins must find a new house. And with typical Moomin good luck, one just happens to be floating by. It looks normal enough, but there are curtains where one wall should be, strange rows of lights, and other odd amenities. Then Moomintroll and the Snork Maiden disappear, and the family realize that the house may hold the answers to more than they ever dreamed."

Boye, Karin "Kallocain"

Boye, Karin "Kallocain" (Swedish: Kallocain) - 1940

I started reading this book and then had to go back and check when it was written. Yes, it was before "Nineteen Eighty-Four", so George Orwell must have received some of his ideas from Karin Boye.

This was another book our international online book club read. I had never heard of this Swedish author even though she seems to be quite well known for her dystopian literature. Probably not that much outside of Sweden which is a shame. So, I am glad one of our Scandinavian members recommended it.

The book is well-written, the plot runs smoothly and even with an opening paragraph that tells us more or less how the story will end, it is quite gripping to guess how the end will come.

I can never understand highly idealistic people who want to change the world with something they have no clue about. The protagonist of this novel, Leo Kall, is convinced that every person belongs to the state and we are only there to serve the state, are not allowed to have any private wishes or even thoughts. How can that be? How can someone blindly follow a leader like a lamb to the slaughter? If we knew that, we'd have fewer problems in this world.

There is a German song called "Die Gedanken sind frei" (The Thoughts Are Free). I always liked that song because it showed that no matter how much can be controlled, nobody can guess and therefore control my thoughts unless I share them. Not in this story, though. A very thought-provoking idea. What if people would know what we think. I'm pretty sure this world would be a worse place because not everybody likes the truth.
There is an article about the song on Wikipedia with a translation.

This is a great book that shows where our fear can lead us, how we can deal with ideas that want to influence our thinking, how we can try to escape the hatred all around us. I wish more people would read this kind of books. It's also interesting to see, like in "Nineteen-Eight Four" how everyone thinks, their state is the only good one and the others are bad and the others think just the same.

A highly impressive book.

Some comments by other book club members:

• This was a great discussion book, both about the story itself and all its many sides, but also to mirror it to the real world at the same time and the author's suicide a year after publishing it.
• Author's suicidal ideas are clearly showing up in this book. Heavy use of splitting and fantasizing about killing or imprisoning the bad side of the split.
• Our library was not able to get the book for me so I reluctantly read it online. I like to cozy up with a book and empathize with the characters but that didn't happen for me with Kallocain. The book was deliciously creepy as were the characters so I enjoyed it as a chilling warmup to Hallowe'en.
  

And here is a great quote that sounds so true especially at the moment:
"Here I am, then. As it must be. A question of time. If truth be told. Can you hear the truth? Not everyone is true enough to hear the truth, that is the sad thing."

This was our international online book club read in October 2020.

From the back cover: 

"A pioneering work of dystopian fiction from one of Sweden's most acclaimed writers

Written midway between Brave New World and Nineteen Eighty-Four, as the terrible events of the Second World War were unfolding, Kallocain depicts a totalitarian 'World State' which seeks to crush the individual entirely. In this desolate, paranoid landscape of 'police eyes' and 'police ears', the obedient citizen and middle-ranking scientist Leo Kall discovers a drug that will force anyone who takes it to tell the truth. But can private thought really be obliterated? Karin Boye's chilling novel of creeping alienation shows the dangers of acquiescence and the power of resistance, no matter how futile."

Russell, Helen "The Year of Living Danishly"

Russell, Helen "The Year of Living Danishly: My Twelve Months Unearthing the Secrets of the World's Happiest Country" - 2015

When I started reading the book, I thought, oh, no, not another one of those travel books where some naïve foreigner starts living abroad and gets everything wrong. Because that's what it looked like over the first couple of chapters. But - Helen Russell finds a way out of it and describes in a very humorous way how lovely the little country in Scandinavia really is.

While she settles in her little house in "Sticksville-on-Sea" with "Lego Man" with some outings into "The Big Town", she tries to find out what makes Danish people so happy. Especially looking at the kind of taxes they pay. But the secret might just be that, the Scandinavians have found a way to make people more equal, to give everyone a safe and secure life. They don't have to worry about health insurance, education for their children, retirement, the state and the taxes they pay take care of that. A happy socialism, if you want.

She befriends some neighbours - which can be difficult sometimes and is made more complicated for her because they arrive in January when everyone has gone into hibernation and learns about Danish life through interviews with specialists and the "little man in the street". And she notices, how much calmer life in rural Denmark is as opposed to busy London. Something I could have told her before. LOL

While she tries to not give any big hints about her whereabouts, like not naming the names of towns but referring to them with nicknames, one can easily guess though what she is talking about, especially if you've been to Denmark and included a trip to Legoland. You probably have been there, as well.

I have Scandinavian friends and while a lot of them tend to be a little quieter, like explained by the author, most of them seem very content and happy to me. So, I think there might be something to the hygge feeling described. I did like this book and will try to read more by her. Because, even though she had only planned to stay for a year, she is still there after almost a decade. That speaks for itself.

Oh, and there is one more funny note when she celebrates Christmas with her neighbours:
They are assured that "most Christmas celebrations tend to be restricted to 'jumping off the sofa at midnight, then going outside to look at the fireworks, then watching a black-and-white film of an old lady being brought food by her butler." Apparently, nobody knows about the film but I can explain that. The film is only 18 minutes long and is based on a play written by Lauri Wylie. It's called "Dinner for One". There are only two characters, Miss Sophie and her butler, portrayed by British comedians May Warden and Freddie Frinton. In 1962, German entertainer Peter Frankenfeld watched the sketch in Blackpool and persuaded the two of them to come to Germany and film it there. It has been on German TV every New Year's Eve since then. From there, it made its way into Scandinavia and many other European countries, though not into the United Kingdom. And, as her neighbours pointed out so eagerly: It's tradition!

If you are interested in a funny little story, watch it here:

And if you haven't been to Denmark, put it on your bucket list.

From the back cover:

"Given the opportunity of a new life in rural Jutland, Helen Russell discovered a startling statistic: Denmark, often thought of as a land of long dark winters, cured herring, Lego and pastries, is the happiest place on earth.

What is the secret? Helen decides there is only one way to find out: she will give herself a year, trying to uncover the formula for Danish happiness.

From childcare, education, food and interior design to SAD and taxes, The Year of Living Danishly records a funny, poignant journey, showing us where the Danes get it right, what they get wrong, and how we might all live a little more Danishly ourselves."

Lindgren, Astrid "Samuel August from Sevedstorp and Hanna from Hult aka A Love Story"

Lindgren, Astrid "Samuel August from Sevedstorp and Hanna from Hult aka A Love Story" (Swedish: En kärlekshistoria: Samuel August från Sevedstorp och Hanna i Hult) - 1975

As a child, I loved watching "The Six Bullerby Children" and "Seacrow Island" on television. Later, I read the books because I wanted to hear more about those lovely kids that lived in such a simple and delightful, for them delightful time.

When I saw that Astrid Lindgren had written a biography about her parents, I wanted to read it. It's only a little story but it's still delightful. The love between her parents and what they gave to their children is a pleasure to observe. Astrid Lindgren reminisces about her childhood and philosophizes about writing children's books. That way, we don't just meet her parents but also get to know her better and learn how she found her ideas.

Astrid Lindgren's parents meet in 1888 in a small place called Vimmerby in Småland in Sweden and stay in love until one of them dies. A lifelong love story. Much more romantic than "Romeo and Juliet".

It's almost like going through a diary or private photo album - yes, there are lots of pictures, as well, and remember all those loved ones of a friend.

I read the German translation, "Das entschwundene Land".

From the back cover:

"The tenant farmer Samuel August Ericsson and Hanna Jonsson met in 1888. They married in 1905 and established their new family at the farm Näs outside the small town Vimmerby in the south of Sweden. In 1906 the son Gunnar was born, later Member of Parliament, and in November 1907 Gunnar got a sister, Astrid Anna Emilia, who with time would be one of the worlds most loved authors. Under the following years, the family grew with two more daughters, Stina and Ingegerd.
During all their life, Samuel August and Hanna loved each other dearly. This book is Astrid Lindgren’s personal tribute to them and to love."

Astrid Lindgren received the Peace Prize of the German Book Trade (Friedenspreis) in 1978.  

She also would have deserved the Nobel Prize for Literature.

Undset, Sigrid "Kristin Lavransdatter"

Undset, Sigrid "Kristin Lavransdatter" (Norwegian: Kristin Lavransdatter) - 1920-22

I read this book over several months. Not because it was so boring or anything, it just was quite long and I always read a couple of books (at least five) at the same time.

I wasn't sure at first whether I should treat it as three books. After all, that's how it was written and published first.

The Bridal Wreath (Kransen) - 1920
The Mistress of Husaby (aka: The Wife/Husfrue) - 1921
The Cross (Korset) - 1922

But then I couldn't put it down after having finished the first one and was glad I had a copy with all three editions:

The Bridal Wreath is about the young woman Kristin, daughter of rich landowner Lavrans. As was custom at the time of the 13th/14th century, she was promised to one guy but fell in love with another one.

It was interesting to see how she and her beloved tried to achieve their goal to get together and what the rest of society has to say to that. It was also interesting to see how they lived at the time, what their customs were and what has stayed from that until today and what has not.

The Mistress of Husaby (aka: The Wife) tells us about Kristin's life as a wife and mother, her trials and tribulations with the family, her husband's ways and politics. It was a hard life for a woman, she had many tasks and was watched all the time, she could make so many mistakes that would bring her shame. Mind you, if I think about it, not so much has changed since then.

The Cross tells us about Kristin's final years. Her children grow up, and she has to make a decision what she wants to do without a real task in the house.

So, we learn about the whole life of a woman back then, from childhood to old age. And it's amazing how much it still resounds today, how we can still follow her steps and say, okay, some things have changed but in general, there is a lot that we still go through, even though we should know better in the meantime.

Brilliant, well written, well thought of, I highly recommend this book to you, unless you are afraid of reading books over a thousand pages.

I would definitely call this an epic tale.

From the back cover:

"In her great historical epic Kristin Lavransdatter, set in fourteenth-century Norway, Nobel laureate Sigrid Undset tells the life story of one passionate and headstrong woman. Painting a richly detailed backdrop, Undset immerses readers in the day-to-day life, social conventions, and political and religious undercurrents of the period. Now in one volume, Tiina Nunnally's award-winning definitive translation brings this remarkable work to life with clarity and lyrical beauty. 

As a young girl, Kristin is deeply devoted to her father, a kind and courageous man. But when as a student in a convent school she meets the charming and impetuous Erlend Nikulaussøn, she defies her parents in pursuit of her own desires. Her saga continues through her marriage to Erlend, their tumultuous life together raising seven sons as Erlend seeks to strengthen his political influence, and finally their estrangement as the world around them tumbles into uncertainty. 

With its captivating heroine and emotional potency, Kristin Lavransdatter is the masterwork of Norway's most beloved author, one of the twentieth century's most prodigious and engaged literary minds and, in Nunnally's exquisite translation, a story that continues to enthrall."

Sigrid Undset received the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1928 "principally for her powerful descriptions of Northern life during the Middle Ages".

I contribute to this page: Read the Nobels and you can find all my blogs about Nobel Prize winning authors and their books here.

Lundberg, Sofia "The Red Address Book"

Lundberg, Sofia "The Red Address Book" (Swedish: Den röda adressboken) - 2015

This is the story of Doris, an old lady. She is 96 years old and dying. Of all her friends, only her grand-niece Jenny is left. And the only connection to her are their weekly Skype sessions. Isn't technology great? Without that, she would have nothing. We can begin to imagine how lonely a lot of old people are and that the computer can be a life-saver.

This is a lovely story about an elderly person who reflects on her life. We accompany Doris from when she is very little through her working life as a model and writer, get to know her family and friends and what they meant to her. A quiet story, yet full of events.

Apparently, Sofia Lundberg also had a great-aunt called Doris and she found an address book after her death, just as the one described.

Did I love those address books that I also owned? Indeed, I did. But I'm happy to have my lists on my computer now. My friends move far too often for me to keep up with changing them on paper.

But there was another part that struck home. Jenny lives in the States and speaks Swedish with her kids. When questioned about their ability in this language, she mentions that her little girl understands it well because she only speaks Swedish with her and she watches Swedish kids' shows online. Her older boys are "so-so". Jenny talks to them in Swedish and they reply In English. That's exactly what happened in our family (only replace Swedish by German). I had to smile when I read that.

This is the first novel by this author and I'm looking forward to reading more.

Doris' motto, given to her by her mother. I think it's a good one for all of us.
"I wish you enough. Enough sun to light up your days, enough rain that you appreciate the sun. Enough joy to strengthen your soul, enough pain that you can appreciate life's small moments of happiness. And enough friends that you can manage a farewell now and then."

From the back cover:

"Meet Doris, a 96-year-old woman living alone in her Stockholm apartment. She has few visitors, but her weekly Skype calls with Jenn - her American grandniece, and her only relative - give her great joy and remind her of her own youth.

When Doris was a girl, she was given an address book by her father, and ever since she has carefully documented everyone she met and loved throughout the years. Looking through the little book now, Doris sees the many crossed-out names of people long gone and is struck by the urge to put pen to paper. In writing down the stories of her colorful past - working as a maid in Sweden, modelling in Paris during the 30s, fleeing to Manhattan at the dawn of the Second World War - can she help Jenny, haunted by a difficult childhood, unlock the secrets of their family and finally look to the future? And whatever became of Allan, the love of Doris's life?

A charming novel that prompts reflection on the stories we all should carry to the next generation, and the surprises in life that can await even the oldest among us, The Red Address Book introduces Sofia Lundberg as a wis - and irresistible - storyteller."

Backman, Fredrik "A Man Called Ove"

Backman, Fredrik "A Man Called Ove" (Swedish: En Man som heter Ove) - 2012

If you are looking for a hilarious book, this is the one for you. A friend recommended it to me - thank you very much!

There is not too much to tell without spoiling it for anyone. Only this. Ove is a man in his early sixties but he behaves like a hundred-year-old. He is grumpy, he makes his neighbours' lives difficult if not unbearable - depending on how much he dislikes them.

Or is he? He certainly is in his sixties, he certainly is grumpy but if you look behind the façade, you see the reason for his behaviour and start liking him …

In any case, whether you like Ove or not, you will definitely love the book.

From the back cover:

"Ove is almost certainly the grumpiest man you will ever meet. He thinks himself surrounded by idiots-joggers, neighbours who can't reverse a trailer properly and shop assistants who talk in code. But isn't it rare, these days, to find such old-fashioned clarity of belief and deed? Such unswerving conviction about what the world should be and a lifelong dedication to making it just so? In the end, you will see, there is something about Ove that is quite irresistible..."

Ibsen, Henrik "Peer Gynt"

Ibsen, Henrik "Peer Gynt" (Norwegian: Peer Gynt) - 1867

I have always loved the music "Peer Gynt" by Edvard Grieg and therefore, the title of this play alone sounded both mysterious and enchanting to me at the same time.

I have mentioned it before, reading a play is only half the pleasure and I'd much rather watch a play but that's not always possible. So, after long deliberation, I finally tackled this one. I find it even harder to read when it its written - like here - in poems.

There are trolls in this play but also travels to North Africa (Morocco and Egypt), we witness a kidnapping and murder, love and betrayal, life and death, this story has it all. It is both satirical and mystical.

However, Peer Gynt is not the kind of character you would like him to be. Why even his mother is fond of him, nobody knows. He is not at all likeable, he is not nice to anyone, we all would be better off without him.

Certainly not my favourite book of the year but I am glad I finally read it.

From the back cover:

"Peer Gynt was Ibsen's last work to use poetry as a medium of dramatic expression, and the poetry is brilliantly appropriate to the imaginative swings between Scandinavian oral folk traditions, the Morrocan coast, the Sahara Desert, and the absurdist images of the Cairo madhouse. This translation is taken from the acclaimed Oxford Ibsen. John McFarlane is Emeritus Professor of European Literature at the University of East Anglia, and General Editor of the Oxford Ibsen."

Lagerlöf, Selma "Sancta Lucia. Christmas Stories"

Lagerlöf, Selma "Sancta Lucia. Weihnachtliche Geschichten" (Swedish: Kristuslegender) [Christmas Stories] - 1893-1917

I had never read a story by Selma Lagerlöf, the first woman ever to have received the Nobel Prize for Literature. And since she wrote some Christmas stories, I thought it was about time.

Of course, I had seen the animated series "The Wonderful Adventures of Nils Holgersson" which was made after her book but other than that, I didn't know much about Selma Lagerlöf. Well, that has changed and I will certainly read a novel written by her, maybe "Gösta Berling".

As with other selections of stories, there are certainly collections of Selma Lagerlöf's Christmas stories available in English but probably none of them have exactly the same contents as this German collection I found. These are the stories in this particular one:

The Holy Night (Swedish: Den heliga natten, 1904)

The Lucia Day Legend (Swedish: Luciadagens legend, 1917)

in "Julklappsboken"

The Legend of the Christmas Rose (Swedish: Legenden om julrosorna, 1908)

God's Peace (Swedish: Gudsfreden, 1898)

A Christmas Guest (Swedish: En julgäst, 1893)

You can even download some of them for free!

In any case, the stories were nice to read, especially around Christmas. They tell us a lot about the life in Sweden about a century ago and that is always worth looking at. Some of the stories are more like a fairy tale whereas others talk about the everyday folk and their lives.

From the back cover:

"When I was five years old I had such a great sorrow! I hardly know if I have had a greater since then. It was then that my grandmother died. Up to that time, she used to sit every day on the corner sofa in her room, and tell stories. I remember grandmother told story after story from morning till night, and we children sat beside her, quite still, and listened. It was a glorious life! No other children had such happy times as we did. It isn't much that I recollect about my grandmother. I remember that she had very beautiful snow-white hair, and stooped when she walked, and that she always sat and knitted a stocking. And I even remember that when she had finished a story, she used to lay her hand on my head and say: - All this is as true, as true as that I see you and you see me. - I also remember that she could sing songs, but this she did not do every day. One of the songs was about a knight and a sea-troll, and had this refrain: - It blows cold, cold weather at sea . ."

Selma Ottilia Lovisa Lagerlöf received the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1909 "in appreciation of the lofty idealism, vivid imagination and spiritual perception that characterize her writings".

I contribute to this page: Read the Nobels and you can find all my blogs about Nobel Prize winning authors and their books here.

Bivald, Katarina "The Readers of Broken Wheel Recommend"

Bivald, Katarina "The Readers of Broken Wheel Recommend" (Swedish: Läsarna i Broken Wheel rekommenderar) - 2013

I wouldn't call this one of my favourite books because the plotline is pretty "chick-litty". Sara is Swedish and works in a Bookshop. Amy is American and lives in a remote village. They swap books and ideas about books.

And that's what caught me. Many Scandinavian authors are mentioned. Therefore, I made a list of all the books and authors they talked about. There are a lot of interesting books here though some of them are tending towards chick literature to me and I'm not a huge fan of crime stories, so a few of them would not be on my reading list.

Alcott, L.M. "An Old Fashioned Girl"; "Little Women"
Austen, Jane "Pride & Prejudice" (second review); Sanditon
Auster, Paul
Bondeson, Euthanasia - crime stories
Brontë sisters 
Brontë, Charlotte "Jane Eyre"; "Villette"
Brown, Dan (The Da Vinci Code)
Bulgakov, Mikhail
Child, Lee - Jack Reacher series
Christie, Agatha - crime fiction
Connelly, Michael - crime fiction
Coupland, Douglas "All Families are Narcotic"
DeMille, Nelson "The General's Daughter"; "Word of Honor"
Dickens, Charles 
Dostoevsky, Fyodor (Crime and Punishment; The Adolescent; The Gambler)
Evans, Nicholas "The Horse Whisperer
Fielding, Helen - Bridget Jones Series; "Olivia Joules and the Overactive Imagination"
Fitzgerald, F. Scott "Tender Is the Night" 
Flagg, Fannie "Fried Green Tomatoes";"A Redbird Christmas"
García Márquez, Gabriel (One Hundred Years of Solitude; Love in the time of Colera; The General in his Labyrinth)
Goethe, Johann Wolfgang von "The Sorrows of Young Werther"
Grisham, John "A Time to Kill"; "The Rainmaker"
Guillou, Jan - Carl Hamilton series
Guareschi, Giovannino - Don Camillo Series
Hanff, Helene "84 Charing Cross Road"; "The Duchess of Bloomsbury Street"
Heller, Joseph "Catch-22"
Hemingway, Ernest (The Old Man and the Sea; For Whom the Bell Tolls)
Highsmith, Patricia "The Price of Salt
Joyce, James "Ulysses"
Keyes, Marian (Rachel's Holiday)
Kinsella, Sophie - Shopaholic Series
Läckberg, Camilla
Larsson, Stieg - Millenium Trilogy
Lee, Harper "To Kill a Mockingbird"
Lindquist, Ulla Carin "Rowing Without Oars: A Memoir of Living and Dying" (Ro utan åror: En bok om livet och döden)
Marklund, Liza - crime stories
Malraux, Phil
Martinson, Moa
Montgomery, L. M. "Anne of Green Gables"
Morgan, Jude "The Taste of Sorrow" (about the Brontë sisters)
Morrison, Toni "Beloved"
Murdoch, Iris "The Sea, The Sea"
Oates, Joyce Carol (the characters and I guess in this case the author agrees with me that she should have received the Nobel Prize for Literature a long long time ago)
Paolini, Christopher - Eragon series
Pratchett, Terry
Proulx, Annie "The Shipping News"
Proust, Marcel "In Search of Lost Time" aka "Remembrance of Things Past (À la recherche du temps perdu)
Roth, Philip (Zuckerman Unbound; The Ghost Writer)
Rowling, J.K. - Harry Potter Series 
Shaffer, Mary Ann & Barrows, Annie "The Guernsey Literary & Potato Peel Society"
Shakespeare, William (Hamlet; Macbeth; Romeo and Juliet)
Sparks, Nicholas "A Walk to Remember"
Steinbeck, John "Grapes of Wrath"; "Of Mice and Men"
Stein, Gertrude "Geography and Plays"
Stockett, Kathryn "The Help"
Stowe, Harriet Beecher "Uncle Tom’s Cabin"
Thomas, Dylan 
Thoreau, Henry David "Walden"
Twain, Mark "The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn"; "Pudd'nhead Wilson. Those extraordinary twins"
Waller, Robert James "The Bridges of Madison County"
Wilde, Oscar 
Witter, Bret; Myron, Vicki  "Dewey: The Small-Town Library Cat Who Touched the World"
Young, Elizabeth "Asking for Trouble"
The Bible

They also mention a list that seems to be interesting:
Mr. Rothberg's Best American Authors List

From the back cover:
"Once you let a book into your life, the most unexpected things can happen...

Broken Wheel, Iowa, has never seen anyone like Sara, who traveled all the way from Sweden just to meet her pen pal, Amy. When she arrives, however, she finds that Amy's funeral has just ended. Luckily, the townspeople are happy to look after their bewildered tourist - even if they don't understand her peculiar need for books. Marooned in a farm town that's almost beyond repair, Sara starts a bookstore in honor of her friend's memory.

All she wants is to share the books she loves with the citizens of Broken Wheel and to convince them that reading is one of the great joys of life. But she makes some unconventional choices that could force a lot of secrets into the open and change things for everyone in town. Reminiscent of The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society, this is a warm, witty book about friendship, stories, and love."

Mercier, Pascal "Lea"

Mercier, Pascal "Lea" (German: Lea) - 2007

This is my third book by Pascal Mercier. He is just such an excellent writer, I need to read his fourth book (Der Klavierstimmer, not translated yet), as well, and then he urgently has to write more.

Pascal Mercier's writing style is almost like poetry, even though he stays very close with his topic. You can tell he is a philosopher in his "first life", he brings a lot of expertise into the story.

In this story, we hear from a father whose daugher learns to play the violin and who is a great talent. This talent destroys everyone's life around her, including her own. Her passion is described in a way that it is easy to follow but hard to understand. You want to get inside her brain, what is she thinking, what is everyone else thinking.

The author creates a great story with fantastic figures. The storyteller is a third person, a brilliant idea to get a little distance to the main characters.

A perfect story, a perfect read.

From the back cover:

"Pascal Mercier's Night Train to Lisbon mesmerized readers around the world, and went on to become an international bestseller, establishing Mercier as a breakthrough European literary talent. Now, in Lea, he returns with a tender, impassioned, and unforgettable story of a father's love and a daughter's ambition in the wake of devastating tragedy.

It all starts with the death of Martijn van Vliet's wife. His grief-stricken young daughter, Lea, cuts herself off from the world, lost in the darkness of grief. Then she hears the unfamiliar sound of a violin playing in the hall of a train station, and she is brought back to life. Transfixed by a busker playing Bach, Lea emerges from her mourning, vowing to learn the instrument. And her father, witnessing this delicate spark, promises to do everything and anything in his power to keep her happy.

Lea grows into an extraordinary musical talent--her all-consuming passion leads her to become one of the finest players in the country--but as her fame blossoms, her relationship with her father withers. Unable to keep her close, he inadvertently pushes Lea deeper and deeper into this newfound independence and, desperate to hold on to his daughter, Martin is driven to commit an act that threatens to destroy them both.

A revelatory portrait of genius and madness, Lea delves into the demands of artistic excellence as well as the damaging power of jealousy and sacrifice. Mercier has crafted a novel of intense clarity, illuminating the poignant ways we strive to understand ourselves and our families."

I also read:
Mercier, Pascal "Perlmann's Silence" (German: Perlmanns Schweigen) - 1995
Mercier, Pascal "Night Train to Lisbon" (German: Nachtzug nach Lissabon) - 2004

Solstad, Lexidh "Catpasity"

Solstad, Lexidh "Catpasity" - 2015

This book was written by an online friend of mine, otherwise I might not have discovered it. What a pity that would have been. I'm not a big animal lover, I love looking at cute cat pictures and/or videos like the next person and if I absolutely had to have a pet, it would have to be a cat. This book certainly hasn't encouraged me to get one, I know with my back and my migraines, I just couldn't do the work.

However, I loved the book, it was so nice to read, almost like having cats of your own. I had to chuckle quite a few times and recommend the novel heartily to everyone who wants a nice read, whether they own cats or not.

A very entertaining book, a feel good book without the feeling this is just all too easy. The author speaks from the heart and we can laugh with her and be sad with her.

I'm sure you find it even more entertaining if you are the "crazy cat lady" in your neighbourhood.

Loved it.

From the back cover:
"Cat experts write books about cats: how cats behave, why cats behave like they do; perhaps, also, what you can do to make your cats behave differently. This is not that kind of book.

This book is a story about how it really is to live with cats - when you let them be themselves. It explores how they have chosen to behave in all kinds of situations, over a period of 15 years. It is a true story about a woman and the cats that have driven her bonkers enough to write a book about them.

I am a survivor of a life with cats. This is our story."

The author also has a blog where you can find pictures of her cats.

Fredriksson, Marianne "Simon and The Oaks"

Fredriksson, Marianne "Simon and The Oaks" (aka Simon's Family) (Swedish: Simon och ekarna) - 1985 

After reading "Hannah's Daughters" with two different book clubs, I always wanted to read another book by Marianne Fredriksson again. And I finally found one. I didn't regret it, a wonderful tale about a friendship that is lined with many obstacles, about a boy growing up not feeling he belongs, about a family with a secret and a country having to deal with a war that is going on all around them, just not directly in their home.

Marianne Fredriksson was a very powerful author who can tell us about a time not that long ago but still unknown to many of us. She manages to weave a plentiful story by adding a colour here and a character there, links that are not that obvious at first but get more and more certain after a while.

A lot of Scandinavian authors are known for their crime stories and I am sure they have a worthy place among the world authors of this genre. Marianne Fredriksson also deserves a place there.

From the back cover:

"Simon is an ordinary boy growing up in rural Sweden. Ordinary that is until the Second World War is declared; until he makes friends with Isak, a psychologically damaged Jewish boy who has fled with his father from Nazi Germany; and until he is told that he is adopted - that the working class couple he has assumed to be his parents are, in reality, distant relations. His biological parents had met and, with no common language, loved each other in an enchanted spot under a waterfall nine years previously.

So begins Simon's quest for self-hood: a quest which takes him through the bitter privations of the Second World War, through his military service, and through a destructive relationship with Isak's cousin recently liberated from a concentration camp. And, always in the background, his beloved step-mother watches over him, as constant as the oak trees on the cliff top that whispered their secrets to him when he was a child."

Shakespeare, William "Hamlet"

Shakespeare, William "Hamlet" - 1599-1602

I am not a big fan of reading plays. I think they should be watched, not read. Preferably in a theatre. However, since we don't have a good one nearby, and certainly not one that plays classics in English, I am determined to read some of the classics that I really would like to know.

"Hamlet" is one of them. You always hear about the Danish Prince, the Skull, "To be or not to be", Elsinore, Ophelia, Rosenkrantz & Guildenstern etc. etc. But you never know the whole story until you have seen the play or read the story.

Well, I made it. A fascinating story. Quite complex. I am sure I will have to read it again to fully comprehend it. And again. And hopefully I will be able to watch it one day.

From the back cover:

"There is arguably no work of fiction quoted as often as William Shakespeare's Hamlet. This haunting tragedy has touched audiences for centuries.

Hamlet is the story of the Prince of Denmark who learns of the death of his father at the hands of his uncle, Claudius. Claudius murders Hamlet's father, his own brother, to take the throne of Denmark and to marry Hamlet's widowed mother. Hamlet is sunk into a state of great despair as a result of discovering the murder of his father and the infidelity of his mother. Hamlet is torn between his great sadness and his desire for the revenge of his father's murder."