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3.78 AVERAGE
3.78 AVERAGE
What a quirky book full of themes very much resonating with me right now. Fans of Jenny Offil's Weather might like this one. A 30-something woman disconnected from herself, her family, her boyfriend, the world, is shaken out of her disengagement through an unlikely chain of events. She works as a PR consultant. When one of her partners bails on the job and life, she has his project thrown on her plate: Defeat the Postal Directive! An EU directive is poised to allow privatized mail service to happen in Norway, which will result in layoffs, reduced salaries for Norways postal workers. She becomes the David to the EU Goliath, championing a cause that seems mundane and small. But mundane, small victories are important. Engaging in them can connect us to people, to the world and to ourselves. Great writing, dark humor and some sentences that just pierce the heart. Long Live the Post Horn!!!
emotional
funny
reflective
sad
This was full of surprises, perhaps the biggest of which was its quiet hopefulness, which is certainly not hinted at early on.
Elinor is a successful Norwegian marketing consultant who is living in a sort of suspended animation - she moves through her days of work, her family relationships, her romantic partnership with a clinical sort of detachment and spectacular compartmentalization, sharing nothing that matters with anyone who is not on a need-to-know basis. When Elinor unearths journals she wrote in her 20s she is reminded of her youthful optimism and energy and is horrified by how far from her dreams she has drifted because, apparently, she lost a sense of purpose. At the same time, other things happen which cause her to question things, a sister having fertility issues, a shift in her intimate relationship, and a significant and sad event in her work life. (In any other book at least the last two things on this list would be seismic life events, but this is so Norwegian so everybody just moves through their days with barely a ripple, barely mentioning these huge shared events normally filled with joy and heartbreak.) One of those huge shifts ends up dropping into Elinor's lap marketing responsibility for opposition to Norway's adoption of an EU postal regulation which would essentially change mail delivery from a public utility to a business required to self-sustain. I won't go into details, but will say that no one is more surprised than Elinor when the postal directive becomes that purpose she has been looking for.
This moving and deeply philosophical tale is beautifully written and though it takes on big ideas it is as quiet as you can imagine. It is a charming and sometimes funny (in a very quiet Norwegian way), and as mentioned at the top a surprisingly hopeful lens on the importance of community, meaning, history, and risk-taking. A 4.5 I would say, rounding up because I feel quite certain this is one that will stay with me.
Elinor is a successful Norwegian marketing consultant who is living in a sort of suspended animation - she moves through her days of work, her family relationships, her romantic partnership with a clinical sort of detachment and spectacular compartmentalization, sharing nothing that matters with anyone who is not on a need-to-know basis. When Elinor unearths journals she wrote in her 20s she is reminded of her youthful optimism and energy and is horrified by how far from her dreams she has drifted because, apparently, she lost a sense of purpose. At the same time, other things happen which cause her to question things, a sister having fertility issues, a shift in her intimate relationship, and a significant and sad event in her work life. (In any other book at least the last two things on this list would be seismic life events, but this is so Norwegian so everybody just moves through their days with barely a ripple, barely mentioning these huge shared events normally filled with joy and heartbreak.) One of those huge shifts ends up dropping into Elinor's lap marketing responsibility for opposition to Norway's adoption of an EU postal regulation which would essentially change mail delivery from a public utility to a business required to self-sustain. I won't go into details, but will say that no one is more surprised than Elinor when the postal directive becomes that purpose she has been looking for.
This moving and deeply philosophical tale is beautifully written and though it takes on big ideas it is as quiet as you can imagine. It is a charming and sometimes funny (in a very quiet Norwegian way), and as mentioned at the top a surprisingly hopeful lens on the importance of community, meaning, history, and risk-taking. A 4.5 I would say, rounding up because I feel quite certain this is one that will stay with me.
“Hiç kimse öncemsiz değil, herbirimiz, her gün ya bir medeniyet kurmak ya da tam tersine dünyayı yok olmaya terk etmek arasında seçim yapmak zorundaydık, en ufacık şeylerde bile üstlenmemiz gereken görevler vardı…”
Baş kahramanımız Ellinor'un yaşamından kesitleri okurken kendinizi olayları yaşarken bulabileceğiniz, sürükleyici ve insana bir şeyler katan bir okuma süreci geçirdim. 2024'te 24 ülke mücadelemiz kapsamında @Huzeyfe 'nin seçtiği nefis bir kitaptı. Yazarın diğer eseri olan [b:Miras|57453075|Miras|Vigdis Hjorth|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1616094766l/57453075._SX50_.jpg|52696208] adlı eserini de en kısa zamanda okuyacağım.
Okusanız siz de çok seversiniz bence...
reflective
all the elements that would attract me on paper: a melancholy, lonely protagonist who finds her way to meaning and small joys amidst the banal realities of the everyday world (especially a world that is inching closer towards a free market capitalist & neoliberal haven); the power of the singular citizen in a small community; the difficulty of pushing up against the overwhelming inability to change your life; the power of a story. but despite all that i was often incredibly bored while reading. it put me to sleep more often than not, and nothing grabbed me in a way that made me excited to pick up the book again. glad i read but wish it affected me to the extent that its premise would suggest.
I liked the way this was written but couldn’t get behind the plot, even though usually the writing style is enough for me. It captured existential dread very well until the paralysis became cloying. I didn’t really understand the protagonist’s decisions not to break news to her nearest and dearest. The sex scene with the dildo was very funny in an otherwise quite repetitive novella.
This was…fine. I listened to the audio book, which was probably a bad choice for this book. It didn’t keep my attention doing chores, which is usually what I choose audio books for. Consequently my listening was stretched over a protracted time period. I think this is a novel to read in front of a fire in the winter in a couple of sittings. It’s quiet and sweet at times. I almost said nothing happens, and then remembered there are two somewhat large events in the book, but they are overshadowed by small personal moments.