The "North" or Nordic region is the birthplace of the Saga, as Sjon notes in his introduction, a region that shares history back a thousand years. The region includes Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Sweden, Norway (and Norwegian Saami), Greenland, and the Faroe Islands. This spare anthology is comprised of eighteen pieces, mostly short stories, but also two extracts, and one chapter of a novel. It’s not about their own contemporary literary output, we are told but “the deeper currents that run under the whole social makeup of the North.” (Sjon, again).

I enjoy a fair bit of Nordic fiction generally (beyond just crime novels)—I’d previously read other work by four of the authors— but I had some trouble getting into this collection, when treating it like most anthologies or collections I read. However, the reading went much better when I picked up on the "deeper currents" Sjon is talking about (which took more than a few stories, so I went back and reread the earlier ones again). My favorite story in the collection was Per Olov Enquist’s “The Man in the Boat” (Sweden) which was about two boys who commandeer several runaway logs from the spring timber drive and make a raft....

Recommended for patient and discerning readers with interest in the Nordic region. ( )

''The wind buffeted me, blowing warm, dry air into my face. He's here, it said. The one you love is waiting for you. You've arrived now. You must find the hall where he lies in a casket. Go past the planes and the hangars, pay no heed to their gaping mouth through which the people surge and vanish.''

When it comes to Nordic Literature, it is probable that our minds form images of gloomy characters burdened with an awful lot of extreme existential crisis, long nights in cities where crimes take place in the shadows, investigated by alcoholic detectives. And yet, these are literary stereotypes linked to the Nordic Noir genre. Which is fine but it is not what Literature is about. Nordic Literature is haunting, raw, full of twilight and sunny birch forests, snow and endless sunlight and brave depictions of the complexity of human psychology.

This collection does one thing right. The stories are free from the aforementioned stereotypes and represent the themes and settings influenced by the landscape of the Nordic countries and the mentality of their citizens. The problems I faced are related to the quality of writing and the presentation of the themes brought into focus. In my opinion, these are the finest moments in this anthology:

Sunday by Naja Marie Aidt (Denmark), translated by Denise Newman: A Sunday afternoon stroll, early September, tranquil and honest. Beautiful writing.

The White-Bear King Valemon by Linda Boström Knausgård (Sweden), translated by Martin Aitken: A haunting, contemporary fable based on a well-known Nordic fairy tale and a tragic version of the myth of Eros and Psyche.

The Dark Blue Winter Overcoat by Johan Bargum (Finland), translated by Sarah Pollard: A young man travels to New York to visit his father. The cultural shock of leaving Finland is almost unbearable and his father has turned into a dog. Yes, don't ask...I can't say I actually liked this story but it was definitely one of the strangest musings I've ever read.

From Ice by Ulla-Lena Lundberg (Åland Islands), translated by Thomas Teal: A haunting, melancholic extract of a novel I need to read soon. Memories of totalitarianism and the struggle to adjust to a new, free society.

''If I let her die, I would end her suffering, and I have no wish to help her. Let her suffer. Ler her battle her own shitty life. When she can no longer handle it, when she finally gives up, then she can end her life herself. I will not help her.''

From Zombieland by Sørine Steenholdt (Greenland), translated by Jane Graham: A young woman, daughter to a monster of a mother, remembers the moments that marked her life in the wake of her mother's death. Her story is linked to another highly dysfunctional mother-daughter relationship. Be extremely careful with this one. It contains triggers for alcoholism, sexual and psychological abuse, and murder. Another collection that calls my name, even though I was terrified and broken by the 20-pages extract.

Some People Run In Shorts by Sólrún Michelsen (Faroe Islands), translated by Maria Thomsen: An utterly absurd, darkly comical and potentially macabre story of two amateur runners.

1974 by Frode Grytten (Norway), translated by Diane Oatley: A story that starts as a teenage Midsummer's days chronicle becomes something much more depressing and sinister.

In my humble opinion, the problem with this collection is related to the selection itself, the quality throughout is extremely uneven. There is cheap emphasis on sex, an excessive amount of swearing. There were stories that read like little masterpieces, three stories that didn't make sense at all and others (quite a few, actually...) that belonged to another kind of anthology.

Needless to say, I had high hopes for this collection. It didn't manage to move me, apart from a few moments and although it depicts the haunted, secretive almost claustrophobic atmosphere of Nordic Literature, I felt that the result was merely average and in need of a purpose. Being ''dark'' and shocking just for the concept's sake means very little. 3 stars because of three astonishing stories. And that's about it.

''I could scream, I could fight against it, I could bite, I could kick, and I would do anything to protect myself. No one was ever going to break me.''

Many thanks to Pushkin Press and Edelweiss for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

My reviews can also be found on https://theopinionatedreaderblog.wordpress.com/ ( )

Contemporary Nordic Shorts 101
Review of the Pushkin Press paperback edition (2018).

18 stories were going to be hard to keep track of, so I started a table in order to keep myself oriented along the way. This was OCD on my part but it certainly helped in remembering details and fortunately the table copy/pasted into GR fairly easily with only minor edits. The asterisked* ones were my favourites. In several cases I found it hard to guess what the original language was and had to make a few deductions e.g. the Aland Islands are part of Finland, but are mostly Swedish speaking etc.

I'm mostly only giving the setups here, but some might consider these to be spoilers, so just in case...


1. Sunday* by Naja Marie Aidt (Denmark, Danish) translated by Denise Newman.
Idyllic sort of family retreat story with bit of a gut-punch ending a la Hemingway's A Canary for One.

2. The Man in the Boat* by Per Olov Enquist (Sweden, Swedish) translated by Deborah Bragan-Turner.
Coming of age story with a possible supernatural element.

3. In a Deer Stand by Dorthe Nors (Denmark, Danish) translated by Misha Hoekstra.
A man is trapped in a deer stand by a wolf.

4. The White-Bear King Valemon by Linda Bostrom Knausgaard (Sweden, Swedish) translated by Martin Aitken.
Somewhat abstract fairy tale story.

5. The Author Himself* by Madame Nielsen ( Denmark, Danish) translated by Martin Aitken.
Somewhat abstract, but funny. The writer imagines themselves as the more famous writer Peter Hoeg.

6. A World Apart* by Rosa Liksom (Finland, Finnish) translated by David Hackston.
Really this is 17 short-short stories, but all of them are rather good.

7. The Dark Blue Winter Overcoat by Johan Bargum (Finland, Finnish) translated by Sarah Pollard.
A man visits his estranged father who is acting like a dog. I don't remember the overcoat.

8. Weekend in Reykjavik by Kristin Omarsdottir (Iceland, Icelandic) translated by Jane Appleton.
Mostly abstract about artists and an art gallery in Reykjavik.

9. The Dogs of Thessaloniki by Kjell Askildse (Norway, Norwegian) translated by Sean Kinsella.
A man and woman are not communicating very well.

10. Ice by Ulla-Lena Lundberg (Aland Islands of Finland, Swedish?) translated by Thomas Teal.
A woman escapes from the Soviet Union.

11. Don't Kill Me* by Hassan Blasim (Finland, Finnish?) translated by Jonathan Wright.
An ex-Iraqi criminal, now a refugee in Finland, is haunted by a man that he killed.

12. Zombieland by Sorine Steenholdt (Greenland, Greenlandic? Or Danish?) translated by Jane Graham.
Extracts from a novel about a daughter escaping family abuse, then about another family entirely.

13. Avocado* by Gudbergur Bergsson (Iceland, Icelandic) translated by Brian Fitzgibbon.
A woman brings home an avocado for Christmas dinner, the family has a very uncommunicative conversation. Quite funny and absurd.

14. Some People Run in Shorts by Solrun Michelsen (Faroe Islands, Faroese? or Danish?)translated by Marita Thomsen.
A woman meets an odd runner who keeps asking the time. They seem to be trapped in a loop.

15. 1974* by Frode Grytten (Norway, Norwegian) translated by Diane Oatley.
Coming of age. A boy reminisces about when he was 16 years old in 1974 and about his parents & girlfriends.

16. May Your Union Be Blessed by Carl Johan Jensen (Faroe Islands, Faroese? or Danish?) translated by Kate Sanderson.
Describes a marriage and its consequences. The footnotes deny the truth of the story.

17. San Francisco* by Niviaq Korneliussen (Greenland, Greenlandic? Or Danish?) translated by Charlotte Barslund.
A young writer travels (or is it flashbacks?) to San Francisco while mourning their partner in this somewhat surreal journey.

18. Notes from a Backwoods Saami Core by Sigbjorn Skaden (Saami-Norwegian, Sami?)translated by Sigbjorn Skaden (the author).
This actually is written in point form notes. Very abstract.
. ( )