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Arv og miljø
Arv og miljø | Vigdis Hjort
15 posts | 12 read | 8 to read
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Tamra
Will and Testament | Vigdis Hjorth
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Pickpick

This novel portrays the damaging ripple effect of child sexual abuse among a family. Not that the novel is graphic, quite the opposite. Hjorth in fact circles & circles & circles around it before the MC (now an adult) actually lands on it. The roles each family member plays in the drama strikes me as painfully realistic.

There are odd places where sentences are repeated, the intent of which isn‘t clear.

batsy I loved Is Mother Dead by the same author but there's comma splices that initially made me pause; a bit of a stylistic choice I had to get used to. I do wonder if it reads better in the original Norwegian. And it made me wonder how it would sound on audio. 1y
Tamra @batsy you know, I wondered about the translation as well. I will check out the book you noted! 1y
annamatopoetry Oooh, it was quite the buzz book in scandinavia a few years ago, I'll be interested to see what the anglophone audience says (I didn't read it, but I did read about 16000 reviews and summaries) 1y
Tamra @annamatopoetry I appreciated the characterization and recommend it, with a trigger warning. I plan to this per @batsy‘s recommendation. 1y
52 likes4 comments
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JenniferP
Will and Testament | Vigdis Hjorth
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Pickpick

When four adult siblings argue over an inheritance it forces conversation about the sexual abuse of the oldest daughter by her father. This is not a pleasant book to read, because of the topic and because it‘s repetitive and none of the characters are likable. But through the sister Astrid‘s reactions, who works in human rights, the idea of how damaging some of our accepted and “politically correct†language is to survivors is spot on.

batsy I really want to read this. I loved 2y
JenniferP @batsy this was my first book by the author - I‘ll add Is Mother Dead to my list! 2y
sarahbarnes I just finished Is Mother Dead and added this one to my TBR! What @batsy said. 😊 (edited) 2y
27 likes1 stack add3 comments
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Megabooks
Will and Testament | Vigdis Hjorth
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Pickpick

My last #ALSpine read this month was definitely the heaviest. I had to stop in the middle for two days to catch my breath.

Bergljot endured sexual abuse at the hands of her father that her sisters did not. She separated herself from her family after undergoing therapy, but she gets drawn back into their orbit when there is a dispute about inheritance after his death. Hjorth‘s writing is realistic and well informed by current trauma theories.

monalyisha Oof. Sounds good but hard. I‘ve had to pause during my most recent read, too…just because I know it‘s emotional. Worth it but requires patience with ourselves! 2y
Megabooks @monalyisha exactly! I‘m glad I read this, but it was definitely difficult. 2y
Megabooks @monalyisha thanks for the great match again! There are a couple of more books I‘d like to get to later in the year, but I‘ve really enjoyed the four I read this month. 2y
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monalyisha @Megabooks You‘re welcome! Happy to hear it. I think 4‘s the number I‘ll get to this month, as well. 🎉 2y
BarbaraBB Sounds like a tough one 2y
Megabooks @BarbaraBB it was!! 2y
Cinfhen Sounds really traumatic - good for you for persevering 🙌🻠2y
Emilymdxn I‘m glad you liked it, agree it‘s very painful to read tho! Writing the tw‘s for the alspine form was so hard - I think this required the most of any book I‘ve ever recommended anyone 2y
Megabooks @Emilymdxn yes! I rarely stop reading a book due to TWs, but this one was hard. I really appreciate the care the author took in expressing this difficult subject. It was REALLY well done. 2y
81 likes1 stack add9 comments
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Emilymdxn
Will and Testament | Vigdis Hjorth
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Pickpick

I see this called ‘controversial‘ everywhere it‘s referred to. I can see why, but I loved it. Perhaps because I listened on audio so I didn‘t feel bogged down in it. It‘s certainly very dark and very repetitive but I liked the structure, a very damaged person circling around the same memories in boring conversations about the same things. I loved the style, the psychology and the translation SO much. #scarathlon2022 #teamslaughter @Clwojick +6

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lauraisntwilder
Will and Testament | Vigdis Hjorth
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Mehso-so

Finished this today. The weather is gorgeous here today and it felt especially so, sitting on my deck reading this depressing story set in the snow and rain of Norway in January. There was so much in the book that was done well, but as others have said, it could have been shorter. Great writing and interesting asides about Bo and Klara, but I think it could've been edited a little more.

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Anna40
Will and Testament | Vigdis Hjorth
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Mehso-so

I‘m not sure how I feel about Will and Testament. I liked Hjorth‘s writing style but she repeats scenes or images, moments and dwells on descriptions and thoughts. That was too much for me. The first half was a pick and then I just wanted the book to end.

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lauraisntwilder
Will and Testament | Vigdis Hjorth
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Part of my TBR pile. I'm starting the tagged book today.

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Sleepswithbooks
Will and Testament | Vigdis Hjorth
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My #FoodandLit read for this month was tough to get through since the main character utterly annoyed me. As a therapist, I felt bad thinking that. As a reader, I wanted to to yell at her. So glad to be done .... this book was too drawn out 🤦ðŸ»â€â™€ï¸

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Texreader
Will and Testament | Vigdis Hjorth
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Butterfinger Add to tbr time. 4y
48 likes1 comment
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mirnas
Will and Testament | Vigdis Hjorth
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Pickpick

Father's death and a dispute over family heritance resurface old family secrets. Why did one of the daughters become estranged from the rest of the family twenty years ago?
An excellent novel that speaks about an important topic.

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thereflectiveflaneur
Will and Testament | Vigdis Hjorth
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Pickpick

Great narrative voice. Tricky family situations, secrets, tensions and memories collide in this fast first person novel! The reason why the family‘s relationships are strained is slowly revealed and keep you on the edge of your seat! The audiobook is excellent!!!

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ulyssesartmiller
Will and Testament | Vigdis Hjorth
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Hey everyone! The winners of the Best Translated Book Award 2020 will be announced this Wednesday 5/27. Anyone interested in doing a #buddyread of the winning novel? Use hashtag #BTBA2020 and tag me. If there‘s enough interest, I‘d like to expand this into reading the entire shortlist, which will be announced the same day...but we‘ll see :)

MegaWhoppingCosmicBookwyrm Ooooh! This sounds fun! I‘ve been needing to expand my boundaries with what I read and this sounds right up my alley! I‘d need time to purchase the book and have it delivered, but I think I‘m game! 4y
ulyssesartmiller @Bookwyrm42 yesss! If we want to just do it for the month of June instead, that‘s cool too! 4y
sydneyerin This sounds great! I've been trying to read more translated fiction so this would be perfect. 4y
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ulyssesartmiller @sydneyerin awesome! Happy to have you join! 4y
Jennifer3 Yes, that would be awesome! 4y
ulyssesartmiller @Jennifer3 welcome aboard! 4y
Kelly_the_Bookish_Sidekick If the book sounds interesting, I might join you. 4y
ulyssesartmiller @Kelly_the_Bookish_Sidekick sounds good! I always love the finalists for the BTBA so I assume the winner is a yearly read for me 🤣 I‘ll tag you when I post the winner so you can decide. 4y
Kelly_the_Bookish_Sidekick Sounds good! I am a big mood reader and I've been feeling like I need a few wanderlusty books for June since I've been cooped up. 4y
45 likes9 comments
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arubabookwoman
Will and Testament | Vigdis Hjorth
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Mehso-so

I nearly bailed early on as I found the characters complaining about not getting a fair share of an inheritance from their parents whiney and unsympathetic. I persevered and I‘m glad I did—it turned into an interesting exploration of family dynamics, but not enough to turn it into a full pick. Maybe because it‘s Norwegian it reminded me here and there of Knausgaard. #ReadingEurope2020 @BarbaraBB Norway

BarbaraBB Knausgaard and a so-so 🤔 5y
arubabookwoman @BarbaraBB Knausgaard in bits and pieces only! That was what kept me reading. I love Knausgaard, but there was not enough like him in this book to make it a pick. 5y
BarbaraBB I see what you mean! 5y
28 likes3 comments
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Leftcoastzen
Will and Testament | Vigdis Hjorth
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Pickpick

#readingeurope2020 Bergljot mostly broke contact w/ her family years ago, trying to overcome trauma she doesn‘t share w/her siblings.But when 2 family cabins are left to her sisters while her parents are still alive ,it has Bergljot & her brother wondering what happened to the plan to share the estate equally among the 4. Is it punishment & an attempt to suppress some long buried truths? When is dysfunction & hypocrisy the breaking point? #Norway

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Leftcoastzen
Will and Testament | Vigdis Hjorth
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I‘m in! Thank You for hosting a great challenge! I have some titles in mind on my TBR,and I‘m glad there will be some searching to be done to find books representing some of the countries.My first 2, from Norway and Italy.
#ReadingEurope2020

Librarybelle Awesome! Looks like good choices! 5y
BarbaraBB Great choices! 5y
ValerieAndBooks That reminds me I need to read the third installment of the Ferrante series -- good to know I can use it for Italy! 5y
42 likes3 comments