Banal seriousness

I had never before read any books from Marja-Leena Tiainen and I can promise that there will not be any others. I have better use for my time.
   The book which I read was 'Kahden maailman tyttö' (direct translation would be 'Girl of two worlds'). It tells about, 17 years old Tara, who is an immigrant. She would like to live like normal Finnish girl, but her brother and father have their own plans. In the end Tara has to run away to a shelter.

The novel handles interesting, important and serious issues, like honor violence, but it don't make justice for them. It keeps a processing of those things in the level of newspaper writing. Characters do and think things, but it haven't any kind of affect to the reader.
   The most irritating character is Tara. She's a stereotype of young girl: she is quite good at school, like languages and fashion, dreams about eternal love and looks gorgeous without known it. She also seems to be little indolence: she just wander through the happenings and she only emotion seems to be horror mixed with agony.
Language is almost as horrific as the main character: because it is a book for youngsters, the writer tries to use youthful language, with awful consequences. There is some 'youthfull' expressions in the text, like 'galtsu' (abbreviation from IRC-gallery). Youngsters really don't use this kind of language.
   The novel try to be a serious story about serious subject, but end up to be banal and ridiculous. There's many better ways to spend your time. For example staring a fly on ceiling.



Mark: 4

Ordinary war

A famous cover of "The Unknown Soldier"

VäinöLinna's “The Unknown Soldier” is a Finnish classic. Many quotes from those soldiers have become common phrases in Finnish and our national broadcasting network, YLE, shows every Independent Day a same film, Edvin Laine's black-and-white version about the novel. 

Once “The Unknown Soldier” raised a furor: it was something new and provocative. It bring up many taboos of Finnish culture. Their part of the jeering get Russians, officers and members of the women's auxilitiry service as well as patriotic fervor and the war itself.

“The Unknown Soldier” follows the story of a machine gun company's third platoon. The storyline follows a course of Finnish Continuation War against Russia 1941-1944. Story and characters based on mainly real happenings, war stories and people. Platoon reminds much Linna's own platoon, where he served in Continuation War.

Characters are a colourful punch of people: there is a ladies' man, a coward, a psychopath, a miser, a communist, a bully... “The Unknown Soldier” isn't a portrait about Continuation War, primarily it is a portrait about ordinary people in war. All characters are human: they make mistakes and some questionable things, but they're also loyal and encouraging for one another. They rebel against officers, grumble about almost everything, swear, drink etc.

Rahikainen, Lehto ja Määttä in Edvin Laine's fi

“The Unknown Soldier” is a powerful and impressive tale. Despite of its topic and historical aspect, it has definitely something to give for a modern reader. It's not groundlessly maybe the most important Finnish novel. Different dialects make the novel first hard to read, but soon you use to them and they help you to identify characters. I can warmly recommend it to everyone.

Mark: 9+

In my bookshelf right now

Now when I have again time to read I have visited in library:

• Anu Holopainen's newest "Varjoja" (Shadows). It's sequel to her feminist fantasy series "Autumnland". It's, like all Holopainen's books, available only in Finnish.
• Marja-Leena Tiainen's "Kahden maailman tyttö" (Girl of two world). It tells about Tara, 17 year-old immigrantgirl, how have to run away to a reformatory. This book is available only in Finnish, but some of her other novels are traslated to Swedish, Danish, Estonian and Lithuanian.
• First part of the Väinö Linna's trilogy "Under the North Star". This important Finnish trilogy follows the life of a cotter family. It has translated to Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Hungarian, Russian, Estonian, French, Czech, Turkish, Croatian, Polish, Bulgarian, Chinese and English.
• Goethe's "Faust". A tragic play about Faust and Mephistopheles (the Devil). Translated to many different languages.
• George Orwell's novella "Animal Farm", where animals of the farm make a revolution. Traslated numerous languages.

Answers to almost everything

Vikas Svarup's first novel ‘Q to A’ was success. And not completely without reason.

   Ram Mohammad Thomas is an 18-year-old waiter from Bombay’s slum. He take part in quiz and for everybody's suprise win a billion rupee. But when waiter, without any kind of proper education, can answer correctly for 12 difficult question, it awakes some doubts. An young beautiful lawyer saves him from violent interrogation, but like everyone, she want to know how he did it. And so Ram ends to tell her his lifestory.

   Ram's whole life is like a cross-section from Indian culture. Even his name shows its diversity (Ram is one of the most important characters in hindu mythology, Mohammad is a creator of Islam and Thomas is one of the

apostles). He has faced politicians and filmstars as well as prostitutes, perverts and all shorts of criminals.

   And still, some times, it feels like the whole novel would be a tribute for a western society; Ram's all acts are acceptable by western standards. He dream about travelling to Australia and survive partly because he speak english. Svarup is clearly avoiding all that can be strange for western readers: all the places are familiar (Bombay, Delhi, Taj Mahal), Ram is little like Oliver Twist and some of the chapter’s names are took from the western light reading (like ‘Licence to kill’). The novel is like a turisttrip: it shows some of places, but don’t go any deeper. Luckily Svarup do that in his second book ‘Six suspects’ (review coming), where he approach for example caste system, political corruption and Kashmir's problem.

   And still the novel is, somehow, quit sympathetic story. I think most of charm come from the way Svarup tells the story. It’s open like Rubik’s Cube: every move displays bricks untill there's a perfect picture in front of us. Anyhow, Svarup has deliciously woven Ram's life to this moment.

Mark: 8

Dorian Gray - defaced by his beauty

Oscar Wilde's only novel Picture of Dorian Gray is a classic. In Victorian England it aroused sensation with its 'immoral story'. It was even used as an evidence in Wilde's trial.

   Picture of Dorian Gray is a little confusing book. Tale Dorian's

depravity and his changing picture can be read as thriller as well as study about art and beauty. In every page I found a new viewpoint to see the novel. So I was bit in a whirl.

   And still Wilde is being able to greate small but accurate pictures about people and their motives. If you have some spare time in your holiday, here is a book, which is worth of reading.

Mark: 9 1/2

Macbeth

I know - Macbeth isn't the easiest text, but it's a good one. It's easy to read it when you think it on play or movie in your head. Then you can in peace consentrate on the story.
   And story is good thought quit traditional. Bad guys lose and good ones live happily ever after. Still Shakespeare is embroider the story so that there are lots of interesting characters. When you cleanse patiently their speeches, you get to know a lot of their personality.
   There is few scenes that don't seem to carry the story to anywhere. Like the witches scene where Hekate appears. Maybe their are for filling, so that actors have time to change their costumes.
   I'm not going to tell more about play, if you're interested, read it. It's worth it.

Mark: 10

Arthur and his round table

I didn't really read sir Thomas Malory's Le Morte d'Arthur, only translated concise of it.

   It adds my knowledge about adventures of King Arthur and his noble knights,

where based on  Mauri Kunnas's children's book The Tails Of King Arthur And The Knights Of The Round Table.

   Actual I can't say anything about Le Morte d'Arthur, because like I said, it was an abridgement. And very terrible of that kind. Characters seemed to run happens to another and times didn't match at all. Indeed I recomendate rather Mauri Kunnas's inaccurate, but so sweet version than this translation.

Mark: 6