Tag Archives: Book Reviews

Faroe Islands: “The Old Man and His Sons” by Heðin Brú #TTWIB

Posted on July 1, 2016 by Lucy Pollard-Gott

Brú, Heðin. The Old Man and His Sons (trans. John F. West). Telegram Books, 2013. Kindle edition. (Original work published 1940, English translation 1970) The Faroe Islands, situated in the North Atlantic halfway between Scotland and Iceland, still have a bit of … Continue reading →

Posted in Literature, Travel | Tagged , , , , | 3 Comments

“Independent People” by Halldór Laxness: First Impressions for #ReadNobels #TTWIB April Challenge

Posted on May 2, 2016 by Lucy Pollard-Gott

I have really enjoyed this month’s Travel the World in Books (#TTWIB) challenge, organized by Aloi of Guiltless Reading, who invited us to read one book by a Nobel prize-winning author. Her announcement post for April’s combined challenge has the linkups of those who … Continue reading →

Posted in Historical Fiction, Literature, Sagas and Tales | Tagged , , , , , , | 2 Comments

An Estonian Tragedy–“Purge” by Sofi Oksanen

Posted on May 3, 2015 by Lucy Pollard-Gott

Purge, a novel by Sofi Oksanen (Trans. from the Finnish by Lola Rogers). New York: Black Cat, Grove/Atlantic, Inc., 2010. (Original work Puhdistus published 2008) Purge depicts the bitter realities of Estonian life during the post-war Russian occupation and Stalinist … Continue reading →

Posted in Historical Fiction, Literature | Tagged , , , , , | 6 Comments

“Scandinavian Christmas” by Trine Hahnemann–My first cookbook review!

Posted on December 20, 2014 by Lucy Pollard-Gott

Scandinavian Christmas by Trine Hahnemann, with photography by Lars Ranek. Sterling, 2013. One of the chief joys I anticipated when I started this blog devoted to a region of the world was the chance to review cookbooks! I like to … Continue reading →

Posted in Cookbooks, Food | Tagged , , , , , | 8 Comments

Review: “The House by the Fjord” by Rosalind Laker

Posted on December 2, 2014 by Lucy Pollard-Gott

The House by the Fjord by Rosalind Laker. Severn House, 2011. The House by the Fjord is the last novel of the prolific romance writer Barbara Øvstedal  (1921-2012), who wrote primarily under the pen name of Rosalind Laker. Her many … Continue reading →

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Call of the Deep North: “An African in Greenland” by Tété-Michel Kpomassie

Posted on November 14, 2014 by Lucy Pollard-Gott

An African in Greenland by Tété-Michel Kpomassie (trans. by James Kirkup, 1983; intro. A. Alvarez). New York Review Books, 2001. Tété-Michel Kpomassie is an extraordinary person and an extraordinary writer. His decision to leave his native Togo in 1959 and … Continue reading →

Posted in Biography, Travel | Tagged , , , , , | 6 Comments

Call of the Deep North: “Palace of the Snow Queen” by Barbara Sjoholm

Posted on November 5, 2014 by Lucy Pollard-Gott

The Palace of the Snow Queen: Winter Travels in Lapland by Barbara Sjoholm. Shoemaker & Hoard, 2007. Author Barbara Sjoholm makes her winter travels in Lapland personal from her first pages, where she confides her deep sadness and restlessness after … Continue reading →

Posted in Travel | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 6 Comments

Arctic Mysteries Run Deep: “Under the Snow” by Kerstin Ekman

Posted on October 7, 2014 by Lucy Pollard-Gott

Under the Snow by Kerstin Ekman, trans. Joan Tate, Picador, 1999. (First published in Swedish in 1961) Kerstin Ekman’s Under the Snow stretches the police procedural  genre–or rather, freezes it–to fit its setting: a tiny Sami village on the Arctic … Continue reading →

Posted in Literature, Nordic Noir | Tagged , , , , , | 2 Comments

Review: “The Laughing Policeman” by Maj Sjöwall and Per Wahlöö

Posted on September 24, 2014 by Lucy Pollard-Gott

The Laughing Policeman by Maj Sjöwall and Per Wahlöö, trans. Alan Blair, Random House, 1970. My rating: 5 of 5 stars The Martin Beck series by Maj Sjöwall and Per Wahlöö changed the scope of detective fiction in Sweden, adding … Continue reading →

Posted in Literature, Nordic Noir | Tagged , , | 8 Comments

Daughter of Fire: A Portrait of Iceland by Katharine Scherman #TraveltheWorldinBooks

Posted on September 6, 2014 by Lucy Pollard-Gott

Daughter of Fire: A Portrait of Iceland by Katharine Scherman, Boston: Little, Brown and Company, 1976. Whenever I hear just the word Iceland, I feel exhilaration. I picture broad flat terrain, nearly treeless, punctuated by some flat-topped volcanoes and bubbling … Continue reading →

Posted in Travel | Tagged , , , , , , , | 6 Comments