![]() ![]() Set in fourteenth century Norway (I know, it’s not a promising start, but stick with it), the 1920s trilogy follows the life of noblewoman, Kristin Lavransdatter. The narrative keeps largely to the estates and convents at which she lives, yet this is no period kitchen-sink drama: kicking sand (or perhaps Scandinavian snow) in the face of all those who maintain that women’s lit is narrow and homely in scope, Undset uses the domestic as a prism through which to view national and international events. So when this three-volume beast thunked on to the mat, it took me a good while to work up the enthusiasm to open it and have a read.īut, oh, am I glad I did because, quite simply, and with no qualifications of any kind, this is one of the best books I have read in my life. It’s simply that on balance I prefer novels to look like books rather than doorstops. Now, as anyone who’s seen my plans to read the world in 2012 knows, I’m not afraid of a challenge. ![]() In the case of Norwegian Nobel-Prize-winner Sigrid Undset‘s Kristin Lavransdatter, it was the 1,100-plus page count that had me gnawing my knuckles in dread. The genre might be the problem (as regular visitors to this blog know, magical realism and I have a largely hate-hate relationship), or the subject matter. Or that the author is someone I’ve made a vow never to read. Now and then someone recommends a book to me and my heart sinks. ![]()
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |