Dear reader, it has been a tough time in terms of news. The death of Alexander Navalny deeply affected me. With his passing, the little light of hope I had for Russia went out. Then I heard Aftenposten’s podcast “Explained”, which asked the question: “Are we seeing the beginning of the third world war?” They concluded that it is quite possible. 😧 On top of the daily images of suffering people in Gaza, this sent me into a pit of pessimism for the world. You probably feel the same way. Therefore, I will not dwell on the dark, but highlight books, authors and readers who have given me light and laughter. I have met master storyteller Mikael Niemi, created a nonsense poem and then I dig the jury in the Lytternes novel prize. I can get the feeling that I’m the only bookworm in Norway who hasn’t read Mikael Niemi’s novel “Koke bjørn” from 2019. Those who have read it will at least be shocked when they hear that I haven’t read this bestseller from Norrbotten. There, Niemi allows the priest Lars Levi Læstadius to act as a kind of detective in a murder mystery. The book also became a bestseller in Norway, with a circulation of 50,000 here. It has been translated into several languages, including English, with the cookbook-like title “How to cook a bear”, which also becomes the title of the film adaptation. POPULAR: Three of Mikael Niemi’s most popular novels. Photo: Oktober forlag When I heard that Niemi was working on a new book AND was coming to Oslo, I decided to be early this time. I gave away the press copy of “Stein i silke” in early January. While “Koke bjørn” had religion as its main theme, it is the labor movement and strikes that are front and center here. Niemi has gone back to the 1930s and wondered why the labor movement came so late to Tornedalen. Landless workers underbid each other at the Road Administration and ended up being paid 30 øre per meter to turn dense forest into a road. Based on historical sources, he depicts a life so harsh that it belongs more in the 19th century than in modern times. Tornedalen is the area around Torneleva, and a separate cultural area. On the Swedish side, Meänkieli, a Finnish dialect, has been recognized as an official language alongside Swedish. Photo: Wikipedia It is meticulously and realistically depicted, so that you can see the soil drain under your nails yourself, and feel the smell of bog, man’s sweat and hot cow manure steaming up from the book pages. I had to take breaks from reading because I was physically exhausted from reading about the exhausting physical work. The novel is history writing, with smells and colors, about a little-known environment. But it also feels exaggerated, a bit biblical and a bit symbolic. I feel a joyful old-fashioned reading pleasure, if that makes sense. This is a family saga, and when the book cuts to the 1970s and 2017, we meet the descendant Siw, living in Uppsala. She has a power, or curse, namely that she can see when people are going to die. Then she sees a shadow of the person who will soon die, and it is quite unpleasant. Not only that. Sometimes Siw hears a voice inside her, a voice that wants her to hurt and that takes control of her body. At one point, the father takes Siw to the family up north to drive the demon out. Niemi doesn’t present it as Siw BELIEVING she is psychic, or that the demon is imaginary. After the realistic depiction of the road workers, I was struck by the supernatural element. news’s critic Anne Cathrine Straume was not enthusiastic about this aspect, which she felt was tacked on. On the other hand, I have called for supernatural elements in novels in a previous Book Letter. This is fiction, so why not drive on? I was curious about this mix between social realism and supernatural elements, so I eagerly sat in the second row when Mikael Niemi visited Oslo, in conversation with historian and writer Jonas Bals. Niemi was in great form. He overflowed with storytelling joy and funny anecdotes from Tornedalen. The hall erupted in spontaneous applause and laughter. Jonas Bals and Mikael Niemi on stage at Litteraturhuset. Photo: Litteraturhuset “Stein i silke” has been Niemi’s most difficult book, he said. In his younger years, he mostly wrote from himself, as in the great fun “Popular music from Vittula”. Now that he is over 60, he feels a responsibility for a larger “we”, for his family and his people, to tell their story: – I have carried these voices for many years. There are younger writers out there who are taking over from me. But only I could write this particular story. HISTORICAL: Road workers in Tornedalen in 1940. It is still shovels and wheelbarrows and pure muscle power that applies. Photo: Norbottens museum That statement reminded me of Jon Michelet’s commitment to the war sailors that he had brought into the world in the novel series “A hero of the sea”. And I am grateful to read living novels about these forgotten stories. But what about the supernatural? Why did it belong in this book, asked historian Bals. – Yes, but that’s how it is in the North, replied Niemi. – If you ask people directly, no one says they believe in supernatural events. But everyone has a cousin or a neighbor who has experienced something inexplicable. Mikael Niemi is Swedish, grew up with a father who spoke Finnish, and is also Sami. The unique thing about Tornedalen is precisely this mix of cultures, where Sami is also included in the majority culture. Niemi had a brother who was mentally ill and heard voices, but he also grew up with the supernatural as a natural thing in the family. Although my family is not from the north, but from the west, I also grew up with stories of dead people and angels appearing to relatives. Maybe that’s why I think it’s wonderful to encounter this in a novel? In any case, I am fascinated by the contradictions in Tornedal’s culture, which is foreign and familiar at the same time. Niemi is a nice guy, who likes to talk about cross-country skiing. Now he has got his Dutch wife to join the Wasaloppet, he told us during the dinner afterwards. Photo: Erik Fosnes Hansen / news What about you? Do you think supernatural elements belong in a good book? Tell me in the comments section. You can listen to the interview with Niemi in Litteraturhuset’s podcast, and as soon as the Lytternes novel prize is finished, he will appear with Cille Biermann in Åpen bok. The fight for the grants Perhaps you expected me to report something about the duel between the writers’ associations that is taking place now. The support schemes for Norwegian literature are an essential reason why we have such a high level of Norwegian literature, a language which in the world context is tiny, but reaches out to the whole world. But even with good arrangements, most fiction writers live on buttons and glossy images. These arrangements are quite complicated, and even debate lion Fredrik Solvang had to work hard to keep his tongue straight in his mouth. Debating rights is not fiction writers’ forte, and the sessions on radio and TV bore the mark of that. For my own part, I think news’s commentator Inger Merete Hobbelstad has explained best what is at stake in this text. I do not want to take a position on the matter, partly because my husband is a member of one of the associations, and my employer news has been slammed by the Writers’ Association’s new leader for the way the Debate was conducted. Therefore, I choose to follow it all from the sidelines. But I can contribute with a little poem! When the Authors’ Association wrote its article in VG, they called it an AUTHOR CALL. The word itself looked like a jumbled pile of consonants and three o’s. Without taking a position on the matter, I was inspired by Jan Erik Vold’s poem “culture week” to create a little nonsense poem: “author’s call” fortapa vantropp call-up author fopprrfattaroop photo proft rappar pattor proff ropa ropfattarropp or proft rappfota fart poopar proft A priest, a financier and an obstetrician entered the radio studio … Usually I go for a long walk while listening to the Lytternes novel prize. Since it’s still slick and weird outside, I instead cleaned out my bags and the spice rack while listening to the first two episodes of the jury discussion. As every year, I am delighted and impressed to listen. Back from left: Sindre Laksemo – finance – Bergen, Hilde Lundestad – preschool teacher and health nurse – Dønna outside Sandnessjøen, Torgrim Hermansen Halvari – photographer – Ski/Vadsø FRONT FROM LEFT: Marius Handegard Økland – vicar – Stavanger, Maria Othelie Underdal – obstetrician – Trondheim Photo: Robert Ronning / news The five-person jury is, as you probably know, selected from applications from so-called regular readers, and put together with a spread in age, gender, region and profession in mind. This year we have, among other things, a financier, a priest and an obstetrician. One of the benefits of hearing them discuss comes when they bring their professional experiences into their interpretations of the books. Whether you come from Vadsø or Stavanger also affects what you see in a novel. Even though I know the nominated books reasonably well, I always get something new out of hearing the people’s jury discuss. It is as if the spectrum of five different looks illuminates parts of the books that have been in the shadows. EMOTIONS: There was laughter, irritation and personal touching moments in the studio. From left: Sindre Laksemo, Maria Othelia Underdal, Marius Handegaard and Cille Biermann. Photo: Robert Ronning The most heated was during the discussion of Oliver Lovrenski’s debut book. “When we were younger” has been praised to the skies, has won an award and has been nominated for three. One jury member was moved and shed tears, while another was provoked and thought the novel was a pure disclaimer. A gap opened up in the studio. If you have already heard the jury discussion, you know that they have voted for their three favourites, and that there is only one episode left! This year, the arrangement will be slightly simpler than last year, so the winning book will be chosen in the final broadcast on 1 March, and the winning author will be notified by telephone. All the episodes are on news Radio as a podcast, but personally I’m so afraid that someone will reveal the winner to me that I try to hear it on the radio when it first airs. This year I will have foot surgery on finals day, so that will be the first thing I do when I wake up from the anaesthetic. If you have tips on books that are suitable to read or listen to when you are full of painkillers, send them to me, [email protected]! The next book letter will be in March, a month I trust will bring some sun and spring! Siss Comment What do you say? Thumbs up or down for supernatural elements in non-fantasy books? Hello! Welcome to dialogue at news. Since you are logged in to other news services, you do not have to log in again here, but we need your consent to our terms of use for online dialogue
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Book letter #30 Mikael Niemi mixes Sami faith and labor history – Siss Vik’s book letter
