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A review by georgia9
The Fly Trap by Fredrik Sjöberg
4.0
‘… certain lines stuck to me like birthmarks. Not because they meant so very much, but maybe just because they matched the colour of something in my life.’
The Fly Trap is a book that blends the authors own witty memoirs on his career as an entomologist on a small Swedish island, as well as the seemingly boundless adventures of naturalist, Rene Malaise.
Despite this book is largely about topics I know little about, like entomology, Sjoberg has a unique way of slipping in small observations about the world. He is able to draw in abstract knowledge about hover flies and other insects, but seamlessly link these facts to succinct, insightful ideas about life and human nature. There are times when these musings somehow seem to speak directly to you and your life, even though they stem from complex truths.
Although in order to reach these insights, it’s very easy to get confused with all the scientific names and narration that tends to jump around between different stories. But then at the end of each chapter, you have these little epiphanies where it all falls into place. It was like the reverse of a dream in that sense. The shift between confusion and clarity was almost kaleidoscopic.
The Fly Trap is a unique, beautifully written book, that somehow has a calming effect on you while you read it. Even when Sjoberg was retelling stories of Malaise’s intrepid adventures, I always felt as if I was listening from the small Swedish island where he lives. And something about that made me feel safe.
The Fly Trap is a book that blends the authors own witty memoirs on his career as an entomologist on a small Swedish island, as well as the seemingly boundless adventures of naturalist, Rene Malaise.
Despite this book is largely about topics I know little about, like entomology, Sjoberg has a unique way of slipping in small observations about the world. He is able to draw in abstract knowledge about hover flies and other insects, but seamlessly link these facts to succinct, insightful ideas about life and human nature. There are times when these musings somehow seem to speak directly to you and your life, even though they stem from complex truths.
Although in order to reach these insights, it’s very easy to get confused with all the scientific names and narration that tends to jump around between different stories. But then at the end of each chapter, you have these little epiphanies where it all falls into place. It was like the reverse of a dream in that sense. The shift between confusion and clarity was almost kaleidoscopic.
The Fly Trap is a unique, beautifully written book, that somehow has a calming effect on you while you read it. Even when Sjoberg was retelling stories of Malaise’s intrepid adventures, I always felt as if I was listening from the small Swedish island where he lives. And something about that made me feel safe.