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More copies of this ISBNeBook editionsAstrid and Veronikaby Linda Olsson
Staff Pick
This book is a knock-out. But what a gentle punch. In the face of their personal losses, a friendship slowly and intimately develops between two women on a quiet plot of land near a small town in Sweden. This is a truly absorbing read that is sure to bring tears and great personal revelations. Synopses & ReviewsPublisher Comments:With extraordinary emotional power, Linda Olsson's stunningly well-crafted debut novel recounts the unusual and unexpected friendship that develops between two women. Veronika, a young writer from New Zealand, rents a house in a small Swedish village as she tries to come to terms with a recent tragedy while also finishing a novel. Her arrival is silently observed by Astrid, an older, reclusive neighbor who slowly becomes a presence in Veronika's life, offering comfort in the form of companionship and lovingly prepared home-cooked meals. Set against a haunting Swedish landscape, Astrid and Veronika is a lyrical and meditative novel of love and loss, and a story that will remain with readers long after the characters' secrets are revealed. Review:"In Swedish novelist Olsson's somber debut, Veronika Bergman returns to Sweden after a childhood following her diplomat father around the world (her mother abandoned the family), and after publishing her first novel titled Single, One Way, No Luggage. She rents a small house in a rural town to work on her second, but in solitude finds herself seized by feverish dreams and paralyzed by the 'stillness' of the landscape and the memories of her recently dead fianc. Reclusive septuagenarian Astrid Mattson, thought by the village to be a witch, takes an interest in Veronika, and the two strike up a friendship based on loss. Against the backdrop of the changing seasons and their small, plangent houses, the two women slowly tell each other their most closely guarded secrets (which concern their mothers and lovers), and venture, tentatively, out of the safety of their routines. Olsson has a clear feel for the emotional wellsprings of both characters, but can't convert her terse lyricism into a fully realized story." Publishers Weekly (Copyright Reed Business Information, Inc.) Review:"Not only impossible to put down, but impossible to forget." Canvas (New Zealand) Review:"Linda Olsson unravels...each woman's story...gradually revealing their grief and loss....This a subtle but powerful novel, tender and poignant." The Dominion Post (New Zealand) Review:"Linda Olsson evokes, with great beauty and precision, the landscape of a friendship between two very different women, each caught in a tragic moment from the past. Their connection, initially as tentative and fragile as the first filaments of ice, gradually strengthens, allowing each woman to give voice to her stories, and in doing so to reclaim 'a heart for beauty.' Subtle, penetrating, and beautifully written, Astrid and Veronika affirms the power of narrative to transform." Kim Edwards, author of The Memory Keeper's Daughter Synopsis:With extraordinary emotional power, Olsson's stunningly well-crafted debut novel recounts the unusual and unexpected friendship that develops between two women. Set against a haunting Swedish landscape, this is a lyrical and meditative novel of love and loss. About the AuthorLinda Olsson was born in Stockholm, Sweden. In 2003, she won the Sunday Star-Times Short Story Competition. Linda has lived in Kenya, Singapore, Britain, and Japan before settling in Auckland, New Zealand, where she lives today. What Our Readers Are SayingAdd a comment for a chance to win!Average customer rating based on 6 comments: 
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Fiction and Poetry » Literature » A to Z
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