Around the World in Books discussion

This one is under 200 pages. It might be downloadable from your library. Finland is one of my favorite countries, so I'm anticipating a good read with this title.

Following the suggestion of Mar, I am re-posting something I wrote in other topic:

"I downloaded the sample of the book and once again I am presented with a sloppy translation to English. And I say once again because I found this recursively whenever I try to read a book originally from a different language. Being Portuguese, I grew up with translations of such a quality that one couldn't say it was in fact a translation. More recently, I suppose due to the cost cuts of publishers (which meant hiring amateurs to do the translations) that state of things changed and I one day I decided I had enough and I wouldn't read any more translations.

I read a classic, The Bridge Over the Drina River, and didn't like, most probably because of a bad translation. Then, I tried Iceland's Bell, dropping the book, again because of the translation. This time I am afraid I am not even trying. Come on, to me the pleasure of reading means I will enjoy absorbing a fluent well built text. It's not possible with translations at this level."

Seriously, this is really frustrating. We don't have as much books published in European Portuguese as there are in English, specially in terms of e-books, which is what I read these days. And books with translations which really spoil the pleasure of reading are extremely frustrating.

In Portugal, the situation evolved in a negative way, from great translations to poor ones, in the last decades. It came to a point that once I e-mailed an author (Simon Scarrow) explaining in detail some of the issues with the translation of one of his books. He never answered me (how polite....) but I got information from someone in the books business that his editor in Portugal got in troubles due to my e-mail.

I suspect the English situation is also related with a structural problem dealing with foreign languages.

Oh my own English is really lousy today. I guess I am too tired. Time to sleep.

It's very commendable, Ricardo, that you recognize a faulty translation and that you read the books in their original languages.

I read The Unknown Soldiers (Portuguese translation of good quality - it was a long time ago) and loved it. The details aren't that sharp in my memory anymore. I think I read it more than 25 years ago. But I kept the idea of a great book, marked by a crude tone. As I grew up and acquire knowledge about the World and its History, the general idea I got from the Finnish war was wrapped in romanticism. "Look, this small country was attacked and invaded by the almighty Soviet Union and they beat the giant", like a David vs Goliath of the 20th Century. Well, this book destroyed that romantic idea. It showed me this war - as all wars - was cruel and dirty, not only for the Soviets - as I learnt as a youngster but also for the "nice" Finnish soldiers.

I'm beginning The Summer Book tomorrow. I've been reading Snow and other books. This one is definitely next.

"The Unknown Soldier" I can find but I'm partial to "...Summer..."

Mar, I don't know. I deleted the Kindle file some days ago.

My book's translation is also by Thomas Teal, who translated several of Jansson's books.

My thoughts on the first half of the novel are very positive about the interactions of Grandmother and Sophia with nature and with each other. They are resourceful, imaginative, and attentive. To be alone on an island in the sea must be an experience. Liked the Midsummer festival, the re-creation of Venice, and the language ("At night they all slept soundly, and the only noise was the footsteps of the ants across the bridges."). The setting comes through clearly because of the natural details and the play of light and darkness.

Finished the second half of "The Summer Book" ("Sommarboken") on Sunday morning. A lot of quotable material and of apt observations about nature, human nature, and their interaction. Quite brave to spend summers on a far-out skerry island in the Gulf of Finland as the only inhabitants. Rather primitive life, and the Grandmother had lived forty-seven years on the island (book published 1972). The precocious girl Sophia seems as untamed as the environment; the active, nurturing Grandmother is a good contrast; the Papa of Sophia is always planning improvements, catching fish, and solving demanding problems.

I wouldn't say I loved it but it did grow on me as I read it. There were a few standout chapters (The Neighbour and Midsummer), but generally it was a little too twee and sentimental for me to really enjoy.

That being said, the island - and others around it - sounds like my idea of paradise!

Perhaps I was a victim of an unfortunate sample or of some bad starting. Perhaps I will give it a chance later. I really didn't like the prose of what I read, and I related this dislike to a poor translation. I "sounded" like that.

Probably both, Ricardo! The prose is admittedly poor throughout, but the first third of the book is dull on top of that. I wouldn't go out of my way to recommend it to anybody, but as it's such a short read, I don't feel like it cheated me of time lost.

The resourceful Papa apparently solved the drought problem with the orange sausage of an inflatable water tank. He immersed himself in carrying out his idea for growing plants in the sandy turf. The great storm chapter portrayed his fearlessness to haul in the nets. The chapter with Verner and Grandmother hinted at unspoken memories. The grandmother and grandchild carving in miniature the streets of canals and the balsa-wood Venetian buildings on the island's easily flooded marshy land made me pause.

Oh also... that chapter with the storm was another of the better ones :)

Quite so, Chris. Like the storm chapter, the best stories come at the end after the Neighbors chapter.

I am about halfway through and am reading the Thomas Teal translation. I have to say that even though the book doesn't really have any action, it gives a feel for the Finnish culture and people. The slow movement, love of nature, little true discussion/conversation and isolation are all key elements of Finnish life. As last year I spent many days working and living in Finland ( about 3 months total), I may have a very different viewpoint.

I would interested to hear if anyone else in our group has had very different viewpoints of any other books we have read based on living or even visiting the country it is set in.

Hey, I posted some Finland pictures. I even found one of how the grass grows into the sea like they talk about in the chapter "The Cave". I had forgotten how strange that was until I read about it.

Enjoyed looking through your pictures of Finland, Laureen. The land seems at sea level in some with the sea spreading "horizonless".

Surprising observation, Mar. 'Menacingly' or 'Implacably" might be alternatives.

Or, maybe 'Defiantly'.

Of those possibilities, 'defiantly' best reflects Sophia rather than 'menacingly' (evil intent) or 'implacably' (sounds steadfastly calm); whereas 'defiantly' carries both stubbornness and ardor.

Sophia's determination to continue to love is reminiscent of Jane Austen's Persuasion--"loving longest, when existence or when hope is gone."

Mar, my reflection centered upon the idea itself.

I do remember Sophia's precociousness in expressing mature, developed ideas for a six-year-old(?)--an exceptional child in that way. The grandmother allowed her to develop her physical courage in swimming and climbing to overcome fear. Yet, she still has a child's need for patience and good outcomes and a child's irrepressible energy to run, jump, and express stored emotional energy.

Like you say, she hardly has any children her age.

I am about 3/4 of the way through and really enjoying it. I love the descriptions of the island. Having spent part of my childhood on a small island, I can relate well. I also found some of the emotions described to be a little odd, and I am not sure if that is the way the book was written or the way it is translated. Sophia definitely is precocious, but I agree that it is most likely to do with being constantly around adults.

I found some of the turns off emotions unusual for literature but also more true to my actual experience of life. I love the way that Grandmother works to entertain or soothe Sophia but will sometimes give up when the girl is too obstinate. The ginger avoidance of the death of mama or the existence of a grandfather were so interesting to me. these are people truly stepped in their environment, and from the perspective of " getting to know a place" I thought this was a great read.

Having finished the book, I have to say I really think it portrayed the Finnish way. The Finns are a people of few words and very deep thought. It has taken me years of being friends with them and working with them to begin to understand them. It is not unusual for a friend to invite me over and our whole conversation that night might be four sentences, but they are seeped in meaning. They love the outdoors even though to me their climate is less than favorable for that so as Alana said they are truly stepped in their environment.
I also liked the part on Midsummer night. It is such an important day to them, yet like everything else subtle - it is very hard to explain. Also, the party boat - for quiet people they love their parties especially the crayfish parties during crayfish season! Midsummer there is something to experience, if you can do so with those you know. If you are there on Midsummer and do not know any Finns to celebrate with, it will be a lonely time as everything is pretty much closed and the true celebrations are with close friends and family. Like in the book they go all night and are very specially planned.