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marko68 's review for:
Little Siberia
by Antti Tuomainen
Antti Tuomainen is a really unique and refreshing author and absolutely puts Finland on the map of the Scandi Noir greats. I’ve read two of his earlier books, ‘The Mine’ and ‘Dark as my Heart’ and ‘Little Siberia’ up there with those if not even better, as Tuomainen blends Noir, dark humour, bleak winters, insights into the human psyche and behaviour into an explosive tale.
In a nutshell, ‘Little Siberia’ is set in the fictional village of Hurmevaara in East Finland, somehow chosen as the final destination for a meteorite that has been hurtling towards Earth. Landing in the passenger seat of a local troubled man, living in the yesteryear of past glory, the meteorite, valued at a million euros, is housed in the local museum temporarily and becomes the source of greed and desire, and the solution for many to rid them of their woes.
Joel Huhta, local priest, coming to grips with the revelation that his wife is pregnant when he knows he is incapable of impregnating her, finds himself guarding the meteorite each night, as it awaits transport to Helsinki. The destiny of the meteorite irrevocably sets a chain of events into motion, Joel at the epicentre... “Suddenly I find myself living the worst time of my life. But I guess that’s what happens; surely nobody decides that on a Wednesday afternoon in a month’s time they’re going to screw everything up. It just happens, then you’re right in the middle of it, regardless of what you do or don’t believe. p 63
I love how Tuomainen writes in a way that exposes the human soul, shining a light on human behaviour, humanness, and self reflection. Joel Huhta is the embodiment of this and throughout the story, the reader is privileged to share Joel’s humanity, inner most thoughts and evolution as a man. And as a priest, we understand how the events of the book shape even the sermons he gives.. “I always speak of how hard it is to do good, how so often when we have good intentions we end up making mistakes, how life is really a complicated affair and never offers easy answers to what we might call the large questions. I speak from experience” p 157
I absolutely loved this book and connected deeply with Joel Huhta and can’t help but be in wonder of the events that come together in each of our lives that set us on the course that we find ourselves on... “I close my eyes, open them again, and I can’t help thinking the same thing I thought on my first night here in the museum. That meteorite has crossed billions of kilometers over billions of years, only to end up right there in front of me”. p 157
In a nutshell, ‘Little Siberia’ is set in the fictional village of Hurmevaara in East Finland, somehow chosen as the final destination for a meteorite that has been hurtling towards Earth. Landing in the passenger seat of a local troubled man, living in the yesteryear of past glory, the meteorite, valued at a million euros, is housed in the local museum temporarily and becomes the source of greed and desire, and the solution for many to rid them of their woes.
Joel Huhta, local priest, coming to grips with the revelation that his wife is pregnant when he knows he is incapable of impregnating her, finds himself guarding the meteorite each night, as it awaits transport to Helsinki. The destiny of the meteorite irrevocably sets a chain of events into motion, Joel at the epicentre... “Suddenly I find myself living the worst time of my life. But I guess that’s what happens; surely nobody decides that on a Wednesday afternoon in a month’s time they’re going to screw everything up. It just happens, then you’re right in the middle of it, regardless of what you do or don’t believe. p 63
I love how Tuomainen writes in a way that exposes the human soul, shining a light on human behaviour, humanness, and self reflection. Joel Huhta is the embodiment of this and throughout the story, the reader is privileged to share Joel’s humanity, inner most thoughts and evolution as a man. And as a priest, we understand how the events of the book shape even the sermons he gives.. “I always speak of how hard it is to do good, how so often when we have good intentions we end up making mistakes, how life is really a complicated affair and never offers easy answers to what we might call the large questions. I speak from experience” p 157
I absolutely loved this book and connected deeply with Joel Huhta and can’t help but be in wonder of the events that come together in each of our lives that set us on the course that we find ourselves on... “I close my eyes, open them again, and I can’t help thinking the same thing I thought on my first night here in the museum. That meteorite has crossed billions of kilometers over billions of years, only to end up right there in front of me”. p 157