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emlo's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
I liked the way the prose was set out, as a stream of consciousness, sometimes with only a line or short paragraph on each page. I found the novel quite a claustrophobic read and very sad. It is naturally very one-sided as you stay in Johanna's head as she tries to build a picture of who her Mum really is, patching together fragments from the past and impressions from the present. There is a line from the book "but what if the challenge is to reconcile yourself with the unresolved?" - it's beautifully observed.
hegesteindal74's review against another edition
5.0
"Er mor død" er noe av det beste jeg har lest av (norsk) litteratur på svært lenge. Nominasjonen til den internasjonale bookerprisen er vel fortjent, etter mitt syn.
Språket er naturlig, lett, velformulert, rikt og underfundig. På samme tid som boka er lettlest, er den også utfordrende med sin store bruk av intertekstualitet og gir leseren mye å kontemplere. Det beste av to verdener med andre ord.
"Er mor død" er fremdeles en tematisering av arv og miljø, kanskje enda mer enn boka "Arv og miljø". Gjennom fire generasjoner overføres forestillinger, sår og sorg. Det starter med besteforeldre med krigstraumer og foreldede forestillinger av samfunnets normer og krav. Romanen synliggjør konsekvensene av disse oppfatningene i neste generasjon, hos fortellingens "mor og far", som manisk søker å opprettholde fasaden og leve opp til det de opplever som samfunnets normkrav. Dermed får neste generasjon, hovedpersonen Johanna, en krevende oppgave med å løsrive seg fra foreldrenes strenge regler og også morens traumer og sorg. Og ikke minst blir det en livsoppgave å unngå å overføre disse til den siste generasjonen som også til dels skildres, hennes eget barn.
For meg var skildringene av barnet Johanna og hennes intense forsøk på å nå inn til sin mor, de mest gripende delene av romanen. Barnets lesning av moren og hennes tilpasninger til morens ønsker og behov, gav sterk gjenklang i meg. Barnets fangenskap i de voksnes verden, innenfor de voksnes regler og rammer er sterkt og sårt skildret.
Anbefales.
Språket er naturlig, lett, velformulert, rikt og underfundig. På samme tid som boka er lettlest, er den også utfordrende med sin store bruk av intertekstualitet og gir leseren mye å kontemplere. Det beste av to verdener med andre ord.
"Er mor død" er fremdeles en tematisering av arv og miljø, kanskje enda mer enn boka "Arv og miljø". Gjennom fire generasjoner overføres forestillinger, sår og sorg. Det starter med besteforeldre med krigstraumer og foreldede forestillinger av samfunnets normer og krav. Romanen synliggjør konsekvensene av disse oppfatningene i neste generasjon, hos fortellingens "mor og far", som manisk søker å opprettholde fasaden og leve opp til det de opplever som samfunnets normkrav. Dermed får neste generasjon, hovedpersonen Johanna, en krevende oppgave med å løsrive seg fra foreldrenes strenge regler og også morens traumer og sorg. Og ikke minst blir det en livsoppgave å unngå å overføre disse til den siste generasjonen som også til dels skildres, hennes eget barn.
For meg var skildringene av barnet Johanna og hennes intense forsøk på å nå inn til sin mor, de mest gripende delene av romanen. Barnets lesning av moren og hennes tilpasninger til morens ønsker og behov, gav sterk gjenklang i meg. Barnets fangenskap i de voksnes verden, innenfor de voksnes regler og rammer er sterkt og sårt skildret.
Anbefales.
behindherpages's review against another edition
emotional
funny
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
matthewmeriwether's review against another edition
2.75
the language felt too sparse, at least for my taste. it felt lazy! as if written in a journal very quickly, an outline for a novel yet to be written. the quickness and bluntness of the language is fitting for the narrative, i guess, i just didn't find it enjoyable, the language didn't provide much insight or complexity or depth. the novel didn't much deeper than listening to a friend recount a story in conversation.
littoral's review against another edition
2.0
I picked up Is Mother Dead by Vigdis Hjorth because it was included on the International Booker Longlist. I had my reservations, since it’s not the type of book I typically read - and after completing it, I think it’s unlikely I’d reread it. But there are things to celebrate in how the book is constructed and draw the reader in to recommend it for another reader.
The premise of the book is that the narrator has just moved back to the city in which she grew up, Oslo, and in which her mother still lives. The narrator has been estranged from her mother ever since she (the narrator) abruptly left home, a husband, and a career in law to pursue a man she has just met and a career in art in the United States. Although she ultimately makes a family with that second man, and gains some international notoriety for her art, her relationship with her mother never recovers, especially after she later exhibits two of her works, Mother and Child 1 and 2, in her hometown.
The writing is a near stream-of-consciousness exhibition of the unreliable narrator’s thoughts about her troubled relationship with her mother. Her deepening psychological obsession parallels increasingly compulsive behavior to physically shadow her mother, observing her apartment, her walks with her sister to their father’s grave, her time in church, even going through her trash. I struggled at first with this book that is so defined by the thoughts of one narcissistic, obsessive character (the first 25% in particular has some repetitive elements), but the author manages to propel the action forward with the gradual deepening of the physical and psychological elements in both the present state of events and the author’s reflection of the past in her thoughts. As these unfold, you reflect on the nature and responsibilities of parenthood; the nature of the ties that form between parents and children, children and parents; and how these are perpetuated across generations, until you are propelled to an explosive end. I would not call this pleasurable to read, but I can see how there can be pleasure in discussing this one.
The premise of the book is that the narrator has just moved back to the city in which she grew up, Oslo, and in which her mother still lives. The narrator has been estranged from her mother ever since she (the narrator) abruptly left home, a husband, and a career in law to pursue a man she has just met and a career in art in the United States. Although she ultimately makes a family with that second man, and gains some international notoriety for her art, her relationship with her mother never recovers, especially after she later exhibits two of her works, Mother and Child 1 and 2, in her hometown.
The writing is a near stream-of-consciousness exhibition of the unreliable narrator’s thoughts about her troubled relationship with her mother. Her deepening psychological obsession parallels increasingly compulsive behavior to physically shadow her mother, observing her apartment, her walks with her sister to their father’s grave, her time in church, even going through her trash. I struggled at first with this book that is so defined by the thoughts of one narcissistic, obsessive character (the first 25% in particular has some repetitive elements), but the author manages to propel the action forward with the gradual deepening of the physical and psychological elements in both the present state of events and the author’s reflection of the past in her thoughts. As these unfold, you reflect on the nature and responsibilities of parenthood; the nature of the ties that form between parents and children, children and parents; and how these are perpetuated across generations, until you are propelled to an explosive end. I would not call this pleasurable to read, but I can see how there can be pleasure in discussing this one.
sawyertaylor's review against another edition
challenging
tense
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Stalking
Moderate: Eating disorder
Minor: Self harm
mcglassa's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
booksnpunks's review against another edition
3.0
Long listed for the International Booker Prize 2023, this novel follows a 60 year old woman who, once estranged from her mother and sister, has moved back to Norway in an attempt to rekindle the relationship. Her mother, however, is determined to never speak to her again and the book becomes a really dark and sinister journey where the narrator concurrently reminisces her disturbing childhood and stalks her aging mother in an attempt to speak to her again.
Nothing much really happens in the book but it gathers pace really well in a way you would expect from a thriller. I loved how the narrator was really unreliable and leaves you questioning the true nature of her mothers actions, or why she wants to make peace with her mother in the first place. It reveals dark information to you slowly and really does grow on you.
I gave it three stars as at the end of the book it didn’t wow me in any way but I did enjoy the writing and themes which were discussed in it. I wouldn’t mind if this one was shortlisted as there is so much to unpack.
Nothing much really happens in the book but it gathers pace really well in a way you would expect from a thriller. I loved how the narrator was really unreliable and leaves you questioning the true nature of her mothers actions, or why she wants to make peace with her mother in the first place. It reveals dark information to you slowly and really does grow on you.
I gave it three stars as at the end of the book it didn’t wow me in any way but I did enjoy the writing and themes which were discussed in it. I wouldn’t mind if this one was shortlisted as there is so much to unpack.