Sara Videbeck by Carl Jonas Love Almqvist
Genre: Realistic Fiction
Blurb (on back of book): This is a reproduction of a book published before 1923. This book may have occasional imperfections such as miss
ing or blurred pages, poor pictures, errant marks, etc. that were either part of the original artifact, or were introduced by the scanning process. We believe this work is culturally important, and despite the imperfections, have elected to bring it back into print as part of our continuing commitment to the preservation of printed works worldwide. We appreciate your understanding of the imperfections in the preservation process, and hope you enjoy this valuable book.
MY OPINION: ***
I read this book for my Scandinavian studies class and actually really enjoyed it. While it was a bit confusing at times, I remained interested in the story for the majority of it and felt very satisfied when it was over. I won't be saying a lot but since I'm one of the only English-speaking reviewers here, I'm ready to try to cover what I remember so English-speaking prospective readers will understand.
The book is an interesting commentary on gender roles and gender equity in Sweden. The main character, Sara, is a financially secure, independent woman. We are unsure of her exact station in life but she is able to execute freedom and independence in unparalleled ways. She rejects the traditional subordinating institutions of marriage in romance but still embraces love with the military officer she meets on a boat.
Sweden (and the other Nordic countries) is known for its emphasis on gender equity and women's rights. I definitely could see how that played a role in this novel with Sara's character acting as an independent woman unlike the expected gender norms for females at this time. Although this book was written by a man, I found it to be surprisingly refreshing in its emphasis on feminism and women's rights.
It's a very realist novel and so goes into long long long long descriptions about the nature and environment and the world around the characters. However, while it may have been tiring, the book itself is very short overall and so once you get past those passages, it's very fast-paced. I understand why it included those descriptions but I must admit, they did get a little boring and I almost found myself skimming a little bit.
I love Swedish culture (and the language) and I aspire to raise my language learning to the level where I can read this book in its original language. I'm interested to see if it will be any different in my overall experience or not because oftentimes, translations kind of change things up by necessity.
Anyways, I would recommend this book to anyone looking to get into Scandinavian literature or just experience a fun story while simultaneously learning more about the culture.
Main Character: Sara
Sidekick(s): The sergeant, etc
Villain(s): Gender inequity, etc
Realistic Fiction Elements: This book is very real to life.
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