This book is a masterpiece of historical fiction set in fourteenth century Norway. Kristin Lavransdattar is a beloved child who becomes a loving wife in a marriage between two deeply flawed people, a mother full of love and anxiety, and a wayward child of Christ.
I first read this book as a young wife without children. I enjoyed it, but didn't realize it's true worth until this second reading. I don't know if it's my own maturity or the new translation, but I understood and loved Kristin much more.
But always with that secret, breathless anguish: If things go badly for them, I won't be able to bear it. And deep in her heart she wailed at the memory of her father and mother. They had borne anguish and sorrow over their children, day after day, until their deaths; they had been able to carry this burden, and it was not because they loved their children any less, but because they loved with a better kind of love. (p. 854)
A simple search online will reveal hundreds of sites sharing great thoughts on this book; I won't bother to attempt anything to compete with them. I do, however, encourage you to read this trilogy if you haven't already, or if you haven't read it in many years. If the single volume intimidates you, find some copies of the three books individually. The new translation is more accessible than previous translations.
Feeling of longing seemed to burst from her heart; they ran in all directions, like streams of blood, seeking out paths to all the places in the wide landscape where she had lived, to all her sons roaming through the world, to all her dead lying under the earth. (p. 1062)
Highly recommended.
I have received nothing in exchange for this review. Links to Amazon, Bookshop, and PaperBackSwap are affiliate links. I purchased this book with a gift card from my brother's family.
