What do you think?
Rate this book
Flyttfåglar
Swedish
230 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 1999
7 people are currently reading
405 people want to read
About the author
Marianne Fredriksson
62 books220 followersMarianne Fredriksson was a Swedish author who worked and lived in Roslagen and Stockholm. Before becoming a novelist, she was a journalist on various Swedish newspapers and magazines, including Svenska Dagbladet.
Fredriksson published fifteen novels, most of which have been translated into English, German, Dutch and other languages. Most of her earlier books are based on biblical stories. A central theme in her writings is friendship because, as she maintained, "friendship will be more important than love" in the future.
Fredriksson published fifteen novels, most of which have been translated into English, German, Dutch and other languages. Most of her earlier books are based on biblical stories. A central theme in her writings is friendship because, as she maintained, "friendship will be more important than love" in the future.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 75 reviews
April 10, 2018
What I love about this book is on it show that sometimes we meet someone or some people who unexpectedly help us along the way.
Both ladies, Inge and Mira, had a tragic or unpleasant past that they still haven't resolved. But through the help of each other and their families, they were able to settle and overcome what happened in the past.
The story of the friendship of Inge and Mira was broadened up to their sons and daughters. And they found not only friendship but a family among them.
Both ladies, Inge and Mira, had a tragic or unpleasant past that they still haven't resolved. But through the help of each other and their families, they were able to settle and overcome what happened in the past.
The story of the friendship of Inge and Mira was broadened up to their sons and daughters. And they found not only friendship but a family among them.
December 26, 2021
Why didn’t I love this book even though everything about it screams that? It shows how the best books can evade us when our minds aren’t ready to receive them. This was a slow burn of a book and traces the unlikely connection formed between a Swedish woman and another with Chilean roots.
I think I sort of became a bit disinterested because of the sheer number of characters with equally intense lives. Yet, there is a faint sadness of beauty that ripples through the book. Ah, friendships. The beauty of them. The sheer incomprehensible nature of them.
I think I sort of became a bit disinterested because of the sheer number of characters with equally intense lives. Yet, there is a faint sadness of beauty that ripples through the book. Ah, friendships. The beauty of them. The sheer incomprehensible nature of them.
August 3, 2014
Well-intentioned drivel. I wanted to like it, but the melodrama was unforgivable. I wonder if this would have been better with much less dialog, because the talks were the most cringeworthy part. Of course, part of this book's appeal is that it's about women talking to each other, so I don't know.
I'll copy down a quote which encapsulates my favorite thing about this book:
"During the week Inge would be alone again and felt that it was a good thing. Mira would drop in as usual, so companionship and talk would be on hand. There was something deep between Mira and herself. For the first time she thought of it as something more than just friendship. Something had been born the moment they first met in the garden center. It had been almost like falling in love. It was not sexual attraction -- neither she nor Mira could feel that way about a woman." (p189)
Clumsy as the prose is, this paragraph is actually good evidence that we don't have a rich enough vocabulary for talking about friendship, which is a problem.
I'll copy down a quote which encapsulates my favorite thing about this book:
"During the week Inge would be alone again and felt that it was a good thing. Mira would drop in as usual, so companionship and talk would be on hand. There was something deep between Mira and herself. For the first time she thought of it as something more than just friendship. Something had been born the moment they first met in the garden center. It had been almost like falling in love. It was not sexual attraction -- neither she nor Mira could feel that way about a woman." (p189)
Clumsy as the prose is, this paragraph is actually good evidence that we don't have a rich enough vocabulary for talking about friendship, which is a problem.
June 25, 2025
Het is een interessant onderwerp en het had een mooi verhaal kunnen zijn. Ik vond de gesprekken tussen de twee vrouwen oppervlakkig, onsamenhangend en vaag, als lezer moet je er maar zelf wat bij bedenken.
July 24, 2025
En bok om kvinnlig vänskap där två kvinnor med vitt skilda erfarenheter av livet möts.
Jag fick lära mig mer om chilenska revolutionen på 1970-talet, sån förskräcklig ondska- och jag har funderat kring människor man möter, vad de bär på för erfarenheter jag inhar en aning om!
Boken är ganska kort och försöken att få grepp om kvinnornas barn och deras olika förhållanden gjorde att det blev lite taffliga porträtt.
En trea räcker gott.
Jag fick lära mig mer om chilenska revolutionen på 1970-talet, sån förskräcklig ondska- och jag har funderat kring människor man möter, vad de bär på för erfarenheter jag inhar en aning om!
Boken är ganska kort och försöken att få grepp om kvinnornas barn och deras olika förhållanden gjorde att det blev lite taffliga porträtt.
En trea räcker gott.
July 14, 2013
Ik ben een zware fan en heb ze allemaal gelezen, schitterende auteur.
March 5, 2024
Ľahko a príjemne sa to čítalo. Kvety, severská krajina, rozhovory dvoch priateliek...potom to začalo byť traumaticke
December 28, 2013
This Swedish book was easy to read and it did not take long to finish. The authors language was nothing special and the plot seemed messy at times, but this was compensated by brilliant characters and a moving main story.
The plot is mainly about friendship and the clashes between cultures. Inge and Mira meets at a flower shop and starts talking, despite or maybe becuase of their differences they develop a special friendship. These middle age women have had hard lives, they are both divorced and worry about their children.
In the beginning they are affraid of their new friendship, scared to do something wrong. And Mira, who is passiv aggressive gets angry when Inge starts to ask questions about her home country and things she does not want to remember, while the Swedish friend does not reveal anything about herself. As the story develops the reader is thrown into their dark secrets of the past, and some very repulsive memories which brings them closer together.
The protagnoists are two of my favorite ones. They are deeply hurt, handle their issues in different ways and are very realistic. I can recognise both steriotypes, the silent Swedish woman and the temperamental Chilean woman. Without their strong personalities this book would not have worked. They are what put a smile on my face while reading, and why this book is good. A more interesting language and a less messy story the book could have had yet another star.
The plot is mainly about friendship and the clashes between cultures. Inge and Mira meets at a flower shop and starts talking, despite or maybe becuase of their differences they develop a special friendship. These middle age women have had hard lives, they are both divorced and worry about their children.
In the beginning they are affraid of their new friendship, scared to do something wrong. And Mira, who is passiv aggressive gets angry when Inge starts to ask questions about her home country and things she does not want to remember, while the Swedish friend does not reveal anything about herself. As the story develops the reader is thrown into their dark secrets of the past, and some very repulsive memories which brings them closer together.
The protagnoists are two of my favorite ones. They are deeply hurt, handle their issues in different ways and are very realistic. I can recognise both steriotypes, the silent Swedish woman and the temperamental Chilean woman. Without their strong personalities this book would not have worked. They are what put a smile on my face while reading, and why this book is good. A more interesting language and a less messy story the book could have had yet another star.
September 1, 2015
הוצאת כינרת, 187 עמ'
לקח לי זמן רב לסיים את הספר שאומנם כתוב בשפה פשוטה ולא מורכבת אך תכניו עמוקים ומעוררים מחשבה.
אינגה ומירה שתי נשים בגילאי החמישים (נראה לי) נפגשות במשתלה. מלכתחילה השוני בינהן מוקצן וברור לכל עין: אינגה היא שוודית מירה ציליאנית. לאינגה שתי בנות, למירה שני בנים. אינגה היא מורה לשעבר וכיום כותבת ספרים על חינוך, מירה טבחית עובדת בגן ילדים. אינגה קרת מזג, מירה חמה.
אבל עם התקדמות הסיפור, מתוך השונות החזקה דווקא עולים לפני השטח המאפיינים הדומים של שתי הנשים.
שתיהן אמהות חד הוריות שעבדו כדי לכלכל את הילדים שלהן, שתיהן התגרשו כמעט מאותם המניעים, והחשוב ביותר לשתיהן סודות אפלים מהעבר.
ככל שהסיפור מתקדם, הקורא נחשף לזוועות שהחיים טומנים. הן מכות בו פתאום בלי הכנה: מתוך השקט הסיפורי צומחת הכרה מזוויעה בעוד אמת ועוד אמת מכאיבה. כמו בצל שמתקלף משכבותיו.
הסיפור מתפתל ומוסיף מורכבות על מורכבות, האמת המתעתעת, השכחה והסוף, שלמעשה הוא לא סוף הוא סוג של התחלה אבל מאידך אין בו את הנחמה של הדברים שמסתיימים ומשאירים את התודעה חופשיה להמשיך לספר הבא. כל זה בשפה נקיה, פשוטה להפליא ונהדרת.
למרות שכנראה הסיפור לא אמיתי, אני מניחה שמי שיקרא את הספר יזהה את גרעין האמת בתיאורים של תקופת פינושה עד שלא פעם שאלתי עצמי מה לשוודים ולגורלם העגום של הציליאנים.
מומלץ בחום.
לקח לי זמן רב לסיים את הספר שאומנם כתוב בשפה פשוטה ולא מורכבת אך תכניו עמוקים ומעוררים מחשבה.
אינגה ומירה שתי נשים בגילאי החמישים (נראה לי) נפגשות במשתלה. מלכתחילה השוני בינהן מוקצן וברור לכל עין: אינגה היא שוודית מירה ציליאנית. לאינגה שתי בנות, למירה שני בנים. אינגה היא מורה לשעבר וכיום כותבת ספרים על חינוך, מירה טבחית עובדת בגן ילדים. אינגה קרת מזג, מירה חמה.
אבל עם התקדמות הסיפור, מתוך השונות החזקה דווקא עולים לפני השטח המאפיינים הדומים של שתי הנשים.
שתיהן אמהות חד הוריות שעבדו כדי לכלכל את הילדים שלהן, שתיהן התגרשו כמעט מאותם המניעים, והחשוב ביותר לשתיהן סודות אפלים מהעבר.
ככל שהסיפור מתקדם, הקורא נחשף לזוועות שהחיים טומנים. הן מכות בו פתאום בלי הכנה: מתוך השקט הסיפורי צומחת הכרה מזוויעה בעוד אמת ועוד אמת מכאיבה. כמו בצל שמתקלף משכבותיו.
הסיפור מתפתל ומוסיף מורכבות על מורכבות, האמת המתעתעת, השכחה והסוף, שלמעשה הוא לא סוף הוא סוג של התחלה אבל מאידך אין בו את הנחמה של הדברים שמסתיימים ומשאירים את התודעה חופשיה להמשיך לספר הבא. כל זה בשפה נקיה, פשוטה להפליא ונהדרת.
למרות שכנראה הסיפור לא אמיתי, אני מניחה שמי שיקרא את הספר יזהה את גרעין האמת בתיאורים של תקופת פינושה עד שלא פעם שאלתי עצמי מה לשוודים ולגורלם העגום של הציליאנים.
מומלץ בחום.
November 2, 2023
I was reluctant to read this because I didn’t really enjoy the last book I read by Marianne Fredriksson. However, this one was an enjoyable read, unexpectedly telling a personal story of atrocities during the Pinochet era in Chile. It also deals with how different people deal with trauma and suppress memories. It sounds depressing, but it is told so wonderfully that it is a pleasure to read.
Full of complicated relationships and awkward communication.
Mira is impetuous and easy to reveal when she has been hurt, whilst keeping secrets about her past. She is outwardly cheerful and keeps active which helps to suppress her pain.
Inge is forthright but guarded. By asking direct questions, she opens up Mira’s old wounds, but this also means that Mira takes a long time to find out about the sorrows in her friend’s life. For some reason she opens up more to another woman, Miranda, who also has a deep-rooted trauma dating back to her life in Chile. Eventually Inge also opens up and there are surprises in store, too.
Full of complicated relationships and awkward communication.
Mira is impetuous and easy to reveal when she has been hurt, whilst keeping secrets about her past. She is outwardly cheerful and keeps active which helps to suppress her pain.
Inge is forthright but guarded. By asking direct questions, she opens up Mira’s old wounds, but this also means that Mira takes a long time to find out about the sorrows in her friend’s life. For some reason she opens up more to another woman, Miranda, who also has a deep-rooted trauma dating back to her life in Chile. Eventually Inge also opens up and there are surprises in store, too.
April 19, 2018
Ja, inderdaad een verhaal over twee totaal verschillende vrouwen in Zweden. Beide gescheiden met kinderen. De een een Zweedse, de ander een Chileense, gevlucht naar Zweden vanuit Chili tijdens het Pinochet tijdperk. Verschrikkingen van dit tijdperk, zo maar eventjes neergezet: martelingen, dood, verkrachtingen etc. Elke keer weer blijft het vreemd dat er MENSEN (of moet je eigenlijk dieren in de vorm van mensen noemen) zijn die dit soort zaken doen.
Ondanks dat dit toch al weer een wat ouder verhaal is, is dit van alle tijden. Aanrader.
Ondanks dat dit toch al weer een wat ouder verhaal is, is dit van alle tijden. Aanrader.
November 6, 2011
This is subtitled A Novel of Friendship, and it did nicely capture the ebb and flow of a new relationship as it develops between two women in middle-age where both are emotionally damaged and one is passive aggressive and the other has the patience of Job. The characters have interesting cultural backgrounds - both Swedish, one having immigrated from Pinochet's Chile. To be honest books about food and gardening bore me, or I would have given this another star.
January 24, 2022
Dies war mein zweites Buch von Marianne Fredriksson. Vom Thema her komplett anders als Hannas Töchter aber auf seine Weise interessant. Wie nah die Geschichte an irgendwelchen Realitäten ist, würde mich interessieren. Geschrieben ist es sehr zugänglich und teilweise spannend, wobei es mir oft zu viel Gefühlsdrama gab.
May 12, 2011
This was a random book I checked out from the library when I just cruised the shelves. It was a good read. I particularly liked the realistic friendship that developed between the two women and their extended families.
August 25, 2015
Not my favorite book, still not sure I even understood it.
March 1, 2019
This book read like a bad translation. Very wooden characters and dialogue. The story was good, but the execution fell flat. I'm imagining it flowed better in swwedish.
August 17, 2022
No tengo palabras… uno de los peores libros que he leído jamás. Quería que me gustara pues Las hijas de Hanna es extraordinario y uno de mis libros favoritos, Aves Migratorias no se acerca ni remotamente a su obra maestra predecesora.
El libro está lleno de estereotipos y prejuicios sobre los chilenos, rayando en la caricatura. Muestra a estos como explosivos y sentimentales, no racionales. Además de que todos los hombres chilenos son violentos y las mujeres sumisas. Me encanta que mencionara “el carácter chileno”, como si algo así existiera.
Se nota que la autora no investigo acerca de la situación en Chile e igual su narración del país está llena de estereotipos: miseria, pobreza, violencia. Además describe a los personajes chilenos como morenos y descendientes de los indios, nada más cercano a la realidad. Leerla fue leer el estereotipo que tienen los europeos de los latinos, en general.
Uno de los mejores highlights fue cuando en un párrafo menciona un viaje que Inge hizo a Sri Lanka y lo narra lleno de estereotipos: mendigos por toda la ciudad, un niño sin piernas, niños pobres robando sus pertenencias.
Sin duda otro de mis mejores momentos fue cuando Mira se pregunta si en Suecia podría haber un golpe militar, pero se calma pensando que en ese país no podría suceder algo así… claro, eso solo sucede en los países del tercer mundo.
Lo más lastimoso es que la autora quiso en varias ocasiones mostrar el racismo y discriminación que existe en Suecia hacia los migrantes. Sus ejemplos eran superficiales y lugares comunes, y a la vez, su libro es a un gran estereotipo racista de los chilenos.
Por supuesto, los personajes suecos terminan siendo los salvadores de los pobres y sufridos personajes chilenos. El típico síndrome del white savior.
Para rematar, tooooodas sus personajes, sin excepción (chilenas, inglesas, suecas) fueron violadas o sufrieron un intento de violación. Todas las mujeres en el libro eran sufridas.
Terrible.
El libro está lleno de estereotipos y prejuicios sobre los chilenos, rayando en la caricatura. Muestra a estos como explosivos y sentimentales, no racionales. Además de que todos los hombres chilenos son violentos y las mujeres sumisas. Me encanta que mencionara “el carácter chileno”, como si algo así existiera.
Se nota que la autora no investigo acerca de la situación en Chile e igual su narración del país está llena de estereotipos: miseria, pobreza, violencia. Además describe a los personajes chilenos como morenos y descendientes de los indios, nada más cercano a la realidad. Leerla fue leer el estereotipo que tienen los europeos de los latinos, en general.
Uno de los mejores highlights fue cuando en un párrafo menciona un viaje que Inge hizo a Sri Lanka y lo narra lleno de estereotipos: mendigos por toda la ciudad, un niño sin piernas, niños pobres robando sus pertenencias.
Sin duda otro de mis mejores momentos fue cuando Mira se pregunta si en Suecia podría haber un golpe militar, pero se calma pensando que en ese país no podría suceder algo así… claro, eso solo sucede en los países del tercer mundo.
Lo más lastimoso es que la autora quiso en varias ocasiones mostrar el racismo y discriminación que existe en Suecia hacia los migrantes. Sus ejemplos eran superficiales y lugares comunes, y a la vez, su libro es a un gran estereotipo racista de los chilenos.
Por supuesto, los personajes suecos terminan siendo los salvadores de los pobres y sufridos personajes chilenos. El típico síndrome del white savior.
Para rematar, tooooodas sus personajes, sin excepción (chilenas, inglesas, suecas) fueron violadas o sufrieron un intento de violación. Todas las mujeres en el libro eran sufridas.
Terrible.
July 17, 2019
These two women met at a garden center and something drew them to one another. They became good friends in spite of many differences: one was Swedish and the other was from Chile, but was naturalized. They had much to share and some to keep hidden, but eventually the hidden cane out as well, and it was not pleasant stuff. My only complaint was that sometimes I got a bit confused about which person was speaking in a train of dialogue. I’m certain part of that was in the translation from Swedish to English. The story itself was unfortunately so real for many.
December 12, 2024
Hoewel het om zeer erge misstanden gaat, regime van Pinochet, verkrachtingen, is de schrijfstijl zo dramatisch romantisch kinderlijk sentimenteel. Te veel de woorden ‘boos’, woedend, verlegen, geheimen. Geheimen waar men echt niet over kan praten, maar op de volgende pagina toch doen. En alles in een decor van planten, bloemen, bomen.
Ik heb stukken overgeslagen, maar heb niet het gevoel dat ik iets gemist heb.
Ik snap niet dat dit boek is opgenomen in de regenboog serie!
Ik ben klaar met deze schrijfster. Na haar boek Hanna, Johann, Anna waren alle andere maar matig.
Ik heb stukken overgeslagen, maar heb niet het gevoel dat ik iets gemist heb.
Ik snap niet dat dit boek is opgenomen in de regenboog serie!
Ik ben klaar met deze schrijfster. Na haar boek Hanna, Johann, Anna waren alle andere maar matig.
November 1, 2021
I read about 80% of this book and I cannot make myself finish it. I don’t care about the characters at all. Mira and her family seemed like the cartoon version of Latin Americans, and it feels to me, as a Latina, that the autor exaggerated the stereotypes for dramatic effect (Mira is too explosive, feels everything at 200%, is emotional all the time, while the Swede Inge is cold, inexpressive, dull).
Two stars because it helped me fall asleep faster for a couple of nights. Such a snoozefest.
Two stars because it helped me fall asleep faster for a couple of nights. Such a snoozefest.
November 26, 2017
Two women meet at a garden center and are immediately drawn to each other. Mira is a Chilean immigrant who is warm, vivacious and full of anger while Inge, a native Swede, is cool, removed and practical. Each have their own secrets, as do their children, and the unfolding of those secrets create a bond of friendship and try to understand each others methods of reflection.
July 27, 2019
A book by one of my favorite (Scandinavian) writers.
It was a pleasure to read. A sad book because of its contents, but also telling about the resilience of people who experience different types of tragedies at different moments in their lives.
I finishex it in no time, because it is much too hot to do many other things than reading.
To be exact: this gem got 9/10.
It was a pleasure to read. A sad book because of its contents, but also telling about the resilience of people who experience different types of tragedies at different moments in their lives.
I finishex it in no time, because it is much too hot to do many other things than reading.
To be exact: this gem got 9/10.
September 3, 2022
In realtà non ho finito questo libro, per un semplice motivo: non mi stava prendendo.
Sono arrivata all'incirca a metà e non lo so, ho deciso che avrei interrotto. I personaggi anche non mi stavano prendendo, non mi ci stavo affezionando e sinceramente credo che anche se l'avessi finito non me lo sarei ricordata.
Sono arrivata all'incirca a metà e non lo so, ho deciso che avrei interrotto. I personaggi anche non mi stavano prendendo, non mi ci stavo affezionando e sinceramente credo che anche se l'avessi finito non me lo sarei ricordata.
April 6, 2023
ich habe das buch gelesen, weil ich hannahs töchter so geliebt habe. hannas töchter finde ich deutlich besser, aber aich das buch liest sich sehr angenehm und man bleibt an der geschichte interessiert. das beste am buch war für mich, dass ich mich zum ersten mal mit chiles geschichte auseinander gesetzt habe und viel neben bei über pinochots militärdiktatur gelesen habe. es ist ein geschichtlicher schandfleck und ich bin sogar empört zum ersten mal über einen roman so richtig davon zu erfahren. hat und wird mich weiterhin extrem bewegen. ich hoffe die beteiligung bzw. unterstützung durch die brd wird ausführlich aufgearbeitet
September 27, 2020
ik heb een dubbel gevoel bij dit boek, enerzijds is het zo mooi hoe twee op het eerste zicht zo verschillende vrouwen tot een intense vriendschap komen, anderzijds slaat het moment van de vreselijke achtergrond van de vrouwen me telkens zo hard in het gezicht dat ik er niet goed van ben
June 14, 2022
Das Buch ist ganz schön, aber ich war ein wenig überfordert von den ganzen Namen und Familienzusammengehörigkeiten. Außerdem hat mich der Schreibstil nicht sher gefesselt. Jedoch muss ich sagen, dass es eine Interessante Beziehung zwischen den beiden Frauen ist.
November 26, 2025
Dit is niet echt een sterk boek van Marianne fredriksson.
mijn gevoel is, ze kon toch ooit beter dan dit, zelfs getwijfeld om door te lezen, maar toch volgehouden.
Het einde lijkt mij dan snel in mekaar geflanst, voor mij niet echt een topper...
mijn gevoel is, ze kon toch ooit beter dan dit, zelfs getwijfeld om door te lezen, maar toch volgehouden.
Het einde lijkt mij dan snel in mekaar geflanst, voor mij niet echt een topper...
May 14, 2017
The writing was OK, but the story was very good. Set in Sweden. Through the Chilean immigrants in the story I learned about the destruction and horrors under Pinochet.
September 20, 2017
One of my favourite books in 2017 - the two main characters were so different with their own unique problems, they both worked hard at building a relationship
February 23, 2018
Bra och informativ om Pinochet och Chile, och hur invandrare kan betrakta Sverige och svenskarna. Plus, som alltid + Marianne pumpar en full med gudomlig visdom!
Displaying 1 - 30 of 75 reviews