Book Club: The Birds by Tarjei Vesaas

This month we are heading to Norway, and the book that I have picked to take us to this beautiful Nordic country is The Birds by Tarjei Vesaas.

‘He was being given sweets like a child – although he knew about great things like shattered trees and lightning and omens of death’ - Tarjei Vesaas

The Birds follows Mattis, a naive young man who many consider to be ‘simple’. Mattis lives with his sister Helge, together they live in a peaceful lakeside cottage and she protects him from the harsh realities of the world. But when Helge falls in love it looks like Mattis’ life will also change forever.

So, why The Birds? Well, actually I nearly chose Book 1 of Karl Ove Knausgård’s popular My Struggle series, but I decided to choose something a little less depressing as the first book is called Death in the Family (in England anyway), and well, I’m not feeling that right now, especially as Spring has arrived to save us all from the doom and gloom of Winter!

Instead, I chose a book that felt a little more gentle and mellow (I could be wrong, lol). It’s a modern classic of Norwegian literature, and as a bonus, the cover is just stunning; the illustration is by the fabulous Taiwanese artist Hsiao-Ron Cheng. Also, Knausgård actually gave high praise to the novel, saying that 'Tarjei Vesaas has probably written the best Norwegian novel ever, The Birds.'

Where to purchase your copy of The Birds

Secondhand: Abebooks

New: Bookshop.org, Waterstones 

Just check back here at the end of each month to discuss the book and find out what we’ll be reading the following month.

The journey so far…

21 Books I want to Read in 2021

Like Byron, I am mad, bad and dangerous to know...why you ask? Because these books will take over your life!

Me and my sister recently re-charged our joint youtube channel and I must say it feels great to be back making videos, there’s just something really fun and creative about it.

Autumn Reading List

I have rustled up a collection of books that I want to get through this Autumn and curiously enough they all fit together aesthetically, a coincidence (I think not!).

Perfume: The Story of a Murderer (Das Parfum: Die Geschichte eines Mörders) by Patrick Süskind

Set in Paris, Perfume follows Jean-Baptiste Grenouille as he tries to sniff out the perfect scent (do or don’t excuse the pun it’s your choice) to help him concoct perfumes. However, he discovers the perfect ingredient is innocence and well I’m sure you know what the only way for him to acquire it is…yes it’s murder, naturally. I feel like this is a perfectly creepy read to keep me entertained as the northern hemisphere gets colder and darker and descends into the depths of Autumn.

La Compagnie des Loups (published as The Bloody Chamber in English) by Angela Carter

I have read and reread this short story collection many times but this will be my first time reading it in French. Yes, I am going to attempt to read it in French for the sake of language practice and the fact that I know the stories quite well should help my comprehension tantamount. If you’ve never read The Bloody Chamber I completely and wholeheartedly recommend it as Carter reimagines famous fairytales and folktales in such a magnetic and creative way.

Diary of an Oxygen Thief by Anonymous

I came across this book because of Anniken Jørgensen (a Norwegian Blogger and Author who I’ve been following and reading for a few years) as she frequently refers to it as her favourite book and I must say I feel like it’s the kind of book that I would like as its a bit morally corrupt and dark (go me for my weird taste in Literature!)

Far from the Madding Crowd by Thomas Hardy

I recently watched the Thomas Vinterberg adaptation of this book and fell in love with the story and the Autumnal aesthetic of the gorgeous cinematography within the film. So low and behold it’s found itself quite high on my reading list as I want to delve deeper into the story and recapture the mood from the film.

Far from the Madding Crowd follows Bathsheba Everdene as she is courted by three different men, William Boldwood a respectable landowner and farmer, Sergeant Troy a 19th-century F*ckboi, and Gabriel Oak a loyal farmhand firmly planted in the friend zone.

The Secret History by Donna Tartt

A classic ‘Dark Academia’ book, this novel just feels like it was made for me. Set in a New England university a group of classics students test the boundaries of morality under the tutelage of a charismatic professor. When I was deciding what to study at Uni I did flirt with the idea of Classics for a while before I settled on English Lit. So for me, this novel will be even more fascinating to explore due to my interest in the subject they are studying and how that will link to the overall narrative.

The Master and Margarita (Мастер и Маргарита) by Mikhail Bulgakov

The devil comes to Moscow (naturally) under the guise of being a magician and starts messing with the lives of the upper echelons of society. There is a talking cat, something to do with Pontius Pilate and a whole lot of other wacky stuff in this satirical work. An absolute classic of Russian Literature, this book has been on my shelf for aeons! And the reason why is that I know I will love it but there is a part of me that is worried that I won’t (Dune turned out to be mediocre and I thought I was really going to fall in love with it!). But the time has come and I am pretty confident that this bonkers book will be a new favourite (well, I hope anyway).

The Parable of the Sower by Octavia Butler

Butler is the Queen of science fiction and is criminally under-read. I myself have been meaning to read her work for some time and when I came across this beautiful edition of Parable of the Sower I knew it was time to take a dive into this iconic black authors work.

Set in 2025, in our now very near future, Parable tells the story of a hyper-empath Lauren Oya Olamina as she navigates an America crumbling due to climate change, political unrest and a growing economic wealth gap. Yikes, this feels like Butler was in communion with the future all the way back in the ’90s!!!

Kristin Lavransdatter by Sigrid Undset

This book is a mammoth and that’s mainly because it is actually a trilogy of novels all compiled into one. This is a classic of Norwegian Literature and also helped Undset win the Nobel Prize in 1928! It’s a historical epic set in Medieval Norway and depicts Kristin Lavransdatter’s life as she grows up, gets married and becomes a mother.

August Books

The Summer Book (Sommarboken) by Tove Jansson

Jansson is perhaps most famous for creating the Moomins but the Swedish speaking Finnish author and illustrator was very much an accomplished writer outside her world-famous children’s books. The Summer Book is an episodic account of summers spent on a Finnish island between an elderly woman and her granddaughter Sophia. It’s a slow poetic book that is rooted in moments and observations. Nothing substantial happens but that’s what makes it so enjoyable. I felt lighter and more present after reading it and I will probably revisit the book again in the future.

Fair Play (Rent spel) by Tove Jansson

Following on from The Summer Book I decided to read more of Jansson’s work and luckily my library (using the Libby app) had another book ready to borrow which was Fair Play. This slightly shorter novel feels very much in the same vein of The Summer Book in the fact that it’s written episodically and has that peaceful feel to the flow of the narrative. Fair Play follows two artistically inclined women Mari and Jonna as they watch movies, create art, talk, spend a summer on an island and travel to America. Again Fair Play is not such a plot-heavy book it’s more about creating a mood and I liked that.

Naïve. Super (Naiv. Super.) by Erlend Loe

Continuing my sudden exploration of Nordic literature I next read Loe’s Naïve. Super. This Norwegian novel follows an unnamed narrator who goes through something of a mental breakdown in his twenties. Besides this, the narrator is definitely different to most people and part of me suspects that he is written as someone who falls on the Autistic spectrum. When reading from this angle Naïve. Super. is a really compelling story and I finished it in one day.

Things fall Apart by Chinua Achebe

Achebe’s novel is heralded as a modern classic and it certainly is. The story follows Okonkwo and his daily life in his tribe until something tragic happens and his life changes forever. This novel also touches on European colonialism and how it changed the face of Africa forever. Religion also plays a massive part in the narrative and Achebe immerses his readers into the tribes spiritual practises and juxtaposes them with the importing of Christianity by the colonists. At its heart, Things Fall Apart is a study on identity and its definitely worth a read if you are wanting to explore African literature and the effects of colonialism.