Read in: November 2017
Edition and format: Или-Или 2011/paperback
First published: 2008
It was refreshing to read a book by a Scandinavian author that wasn’t a thriller, but maintains the same gloomy, chilly atmosphere throughout.
I had my usual qualms with a less than perfect translation. The story is engaging, the characters are very well-written. Would have gladly seen more of the mother’s back story unravel, but the very fact that we can only learn about her through the reminiscences and observances of her son is intriguing. The flashbacks are also intricately interwoven within the narrative and comprise a comprehensible unity with the present moment. It left me wanting for more, but unfortunately I didn’t feel I had the means to reconstruct the rest of the story myself. However, it’s so satisfyingly melancholy, that it’s worth a read even so.
