[Hardcover]
This book backhanded me across the face, and I am glad for it! I will gladly admit that I had absolutely no clue about it, I have never read anything by Fossum before (although I know of her), and I picked up this book mainly because there was a dragon on the cover 😆
No regrets!
First of all: No wonder people are going to rant about this book and give it bad reviews, because the description is WAY OFF! It's like the front and back of the cover, and the descriptions online are of a completely different book. I have NO idea what the publishers were thinking here... It certainly doesn't do the author or book any favors.
I am glad I didn't start this book with any expectations, because it made me able to discover it and enjoy it as I went. In truth, it reminded me of "Pappa var nesten på Woodstock" by Ane Barmen, it has the same general theme and vulnerability, but it is also much more dark and grim.
I bought every single part of it!
"Jeg kan ikke gi henne noe jeg aldri har fått, sa Aksel. Skal jeg tilgi henne fordi jeg ser henne så tydelig? Skal det være en slags automatikk der, at det man forstår, det skal man tilgi?"
Fossum is brilliant at using subtle descriptions and illustrations that make me think she has an intimate experience with these relationships. Some of them so pointed that maybe only those who know can recognize them. As it should be. It had me re-read parts and test the sentences with my stomach. It made a real impression on me. If you've had a good childhood, you may not get it.
"Jeg anklager deg ikke for noe som helst når det kommer til hvem du er, tenkte han, eller hva du og far mente om ting. [...] Men dere fikk unger. Og der fulgte ikke med noen bruksanvisning, gjorde det vel? Det gikk fint da vi var små [...] Men så begynte vi å se tilbake på dere."
This story is about heritage, attachment, family, mental health and trauma. It is clean and brutal, it is realistic and vulnerable, it is brilliantly excecuted.
Let's just set it straight: If you are to read this book, do NOT buy into the descriptions or cover!
- This is NOT crime or mystery novel.
- This is NOT a thriller.
- This book is NOT about a detective called Feber, his presence last only from page 207 to page 223, and he is barely relevant to the story at all.
"En dag gikk jeg inn på kjøkkenet til mor. Hun sto over benken som hun pleide, og hun så at jeg kom gående over gulvet. Jeg ville fram til henne og henge i skjørtet hennes, men plutselig satt jeg fast i noe seigt. Jeg kunne ikke røre føttene mine, og mens jeg kavet for å komme løs, ga hun meg et sånt blikk av uvilje, som om jeg var er insekt hun ikke ville ha i huset. Jeg tror jeg sitter fast i den geléen fremdeles."