Vesaas, Tarjei

The Ice Palace (Peter Owen Modern Classics)

Average customer rating:

A sad but great tale about adolescent life in wintercold Norway
Elegant, completely at ease with words
Austere, Primeval, and Haunting
Absolutely beautiful
True art!

The Ice Palace (Peter Owen Modern Classics)
Tarjei Vesaas
Manufacturer: Peter Owen Publishers
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Contemporary | General | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books

Literary | General | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books

German | World Literature | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books
Similar Items:

The Birds (Peter Owen Modern Classics)
Through Naked Branches
Pan
The Dwarf
Popular Music From Vittula: A Novel

ASIN: 0720611229

Customer Reviews:

A sad but great tale about adolescent life in wintercold Norway.......2006-08-31

This is one of Vesaas' last books, and quite well-known in literary circles, both in Norway and abroad. The book spins around two girls living in rural Norway in their eleventh winter. One of the girls has just moved to the tiny village, and instantly forms a bond of friendship with the leader of the pack of children at their school; the other girl. Then something sad happens that I won't reveal. The tale spins around these happenings: the struggle against the dark forces of the human mind, and the experience of growing up. The tale is a short read, and is Vesaas at his most typical style of writing. I really enjoy this book, and I've read it several times.

So if you want to get to know one of Norway's greatest authors, almost up there at Knut Hamsun's level, then this would be a great place to start. The author died in 1970, but his anti-modern thought was quite present in most of his books, although an annoying streak of pacifism and humanism is present in some of his works. But this is not one of those books, so no reason to avoid this great read from the winter nights of rural Norway.

(I read a different edition of the book)

Elegant, completely at ease with words.......2006-03-09

It is a beautiful piece of poetic prose. The innocent and simple story of two girls and their budding friendship broken by death is at the same time intense and calm. The descriptions of the surroundings, the ice palace at the waterfall, which claims Unn, together with the thoughts of Siss, create the Nordic climate, make the reader breathe the cold air, and show the world as a complicated and unyielding entity, strange for a little girl, hard to understand. Yet Siss understands somehow, her world gets in order and all the events have their place.
Only a poet can use words in such a beautiful fashion. This book was a sensual delight. Probably a great bonus is the translation, must have been not a trivial task!

Austere, Primeval, and Haunting.......2004-08-31

Vesaas's book is beautiful.

His style is experimental and modern, which means that he presents information in a slightly elliptical way, perhaps one that more closely echoes the motions of actual consciousness. This means that you may have to read the same passage two or three times: there are very few topic sentences introducing clearly defined paragraphs. Luckily, his vocabulary is pitch-perfect: small words, chosen for precision rather than pretence.

A novel has two major compenents, one being the social background of the story and the other being the story itself. The background is crystalline and very, very Norwegian: a harsh climate; reserved, good people; an aura of isolation that may only come from years of cold. The story itself turns on a secret and a promise, and the young girl Siss's reaction to them: not a secret like those in Babysitters' Club books, nor like the secrets in a spy novel: but a compelling one, an all-encompassing one, one that drives people in a way that doesn't make sense in a wholly rational world and yet drives them all the same. I won't say more.

Highly recommended. Oh-- and read it quickly. Like, perhaps, Faulkner (though not as difficult), you'll lose track of what's going on if you take too much time between readings.

Absolutely beautiful.......2000-07-19

A beautiful book. The imagery is lovely, and I got hooked when one of the characters actually wanders into the ice palace. The descriptions of the light, and the interplay of the changing colors and shapes of the ice were mesmerizing--I stayed up late and couldn't go to bed. And in the morning it seemed it should be all ice outside instead of the height of summer. Tremendously atmospheric, simply splendid. The first book in about six months to make it straight to my read-again shelf. And short--a quick read if you're busy.

True art!.......1999-02-21

One of the most beautiful books ever written. You are not literate before you have read this book.

Average customer rating:

Outside the Wind Whispers/Ute susar vinden
from the stoop
A Total "Bargoon"
Well Worth It.
More than poetic

Through Naked Branches
Tarjei Vesaas , and Roger Greenwald
Manufacturer: Princeton University Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Poetry | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books

The Birds (Peter Owen Modern Classics)
The Ice Palace (Peter Owen Modern Classics)
The Boat in the Evening (Peter Owen Modern Classics)

ASIN: 0691008973

Book Description

Tarjei Vesaas, one of Scandinavia's greatest fiction writers, has been less well known as a poet. Now Roger Greenwald, an award-winning translator of Scandinavian poetry, presents forty-six poems drawn from Vesaas's six volumes of poetry. This selection is intended to reveal the distinctive sensibility and voice of Vesaas the poet. The Norwegian texts appear facing the English versions, which won the American-Scandinavian Foundation Translation Prize.

The translator's groundbreaking introduction explores why Vesaas's poetry has often resisted critical analysis and how it challenges received notions of modernism. Excerpts from Vesaas's writings about himself and his work supply helpful background and give some sense of the man behind the work. Vesaas emerges as a lyric and meditative poet of uncommon depth, who renders states of being beyond the reach not only of discourse, but of most poetry as well.

From "The Boat on Land":

Your still boat hasn't got a name. Your still boat hasn't got a port. Your secret boat on land.

From "Shadows on the Point"

We stand here in your deep night, Night, and wait for something new from beyond the point. The current runs black and silent. And what we feel through it we don't tell each other.

Customer Reviews:

Outside the Wind Whispers/Ute susar vinden.......2001-03-24

Many of the poems could be mentioned but one in particular seems worthy of note. "Outside the Wind Whispers" is the poem I have chosen to write about because I think it reveals an interesting aspect of Vesaas's poetry. Forgive my taking the liberty of quoting from page 35 of the paperback version of Through Naked Branches:

Inklings of the storm,

of the heavy trembling,

are surely what drive

us together.

Inklings of loneliness,

of a creeping frost,

an imminent fall,

a futile cry.--

[The formatting of the poetry might be lost. I have double spaced the lines hoping that they maintain the proper format. When I didn't double space them, they flowed together as one long line.]

This final stanza of "Outside the Wind Whispers" seems to me to describe the sensation of much of Vesaas's poetry. He often describes awesome and magnificent aspects of nature and contrasts these with a sensation of emptiness or spaciousness. He attributes human characteristics to nature and creates a feeling of humanity overwhelmed, or humanity buffeted by forces it cannot control.

from the stoop.......2001-03-23

the previous reviewers have not mentioned "From the Stoop." this poem is about dusk's arrival. it is one of many in the collection that refreshingly infuses a typical daily experience or event with a new and emphatic significance. in a sense, the reader must pause and remember to reconsider the dramatic effect of that which she sees every day in nature. "Rain in Hiroshima" on the other hand, describes an unnatural event which had, and continues to have, a huge impact on the world, which is very different than that of dusk's approach. however, the two poems are written with a similar wondering and melancholic intensity.

I would like to quote the poetry to show you the grace and power of the language, but I am not sure if that is permitted.

A Total "Bargoon".......2001-03-21

I enjoyed Miss Haversham's review, but I must point out that you don't have to be a contortionist to enjoy this book!! She hit the nail on the head regarding the highlights of the book's content, but she did make a few errors that I cannot resist correcting. The paperback version of the book is almost 200 pages, not 150 pages. The poetry is translated from Norwegian into English and not the other way around.

I too enjoyed the poem entitled "The Small Rodents," but I was more impressed by such poems as "The Loon Heads North" and "The Horse." The poetry is mysterious, moving and quite varied in theme.

Bravo to Miss Haversham for reviewing this book first and pointing out its many interesting aspects!

Well Worth It........2001-03-21

A friend recommended this book to me, because he knows that I am an avid poetry reader and that I have spent many years studying Norwegian culture. I am a discriminating northernist who typically spends the short winter days reading long books. Of course, I had heard of the well known poet, Tarjei Vesaas, but because my Norwegian is rather rusty I needed to read it in translation. I was not aware until recently that Amazon carried such a good translation of his work.

This 200 page collection is quite fine. Some of the poetry is evocative of the rural north and its stillness. However, I will not try to explain the poetry, but will leave it to you to read translator Roger Greenwald's introductory essay which explains these poems with remarkable clarity.

I highly recommend this book.

More than poetic.......2001-03-18

Have you ever wondered what happens to small field animals during the winter? If so, you must read this book. Not only will you discover the answer to this question, but you will learn other things while you enjoy some completely unpretentious, beautiful poetry.

This book can best be described as a "total experience."

What do I mean by this?

Well, first, you will be able to read a very engaging and clearly written scholarly essay on Vesaas's poetry. Second, the poems are translated into Norwegian and that means you will learn a little about the way that language looks and feels. Third, you will read an appendix, which is a collage of Vesaas's life culled from various sources, but expressed in his own words.

He was born in 1897 on a farm. The collage describes various life experiences and situations in which Vesaas found himself. As you read the collage you will feel like you know him very well, and you will wish to know him better. And you will know him better, because you can read the rich poetry and discover more about his experience of his/our world.

An interesting aspect of this book is that the overall presentation and content is like a collage. Because its approximately 150 pages contain so many different ideas, so much information and so many lovely poems it can be read in any direction. By this I mean that you can read poems first, then the intro, then the collage. Alternatively, you can reverse this order, or you can flip from here to there reading bits and pieces from each section. Any direction in which you choose to read this book you will have a very enjoyable experience, because it is just plain GOOD.

Don't be scared because the poetry is translated into English from another language. The words flow as clearly as if they hadn't been translated at all.

Even the cover art is good.

The Birds (Peter Owen Modern Classics)
Average customer rating:

So beautiful

Another magnificent tale from Vesaas' hand

Literary masterpiece from the North

The greatest book I have read

Mad innocent youth.

The Birds (Peter Owen Modern Classics)
Tarjei Vesaas
Manufacturer: Peter Owen Publishers
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Classics | General | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books
Contemporary | General | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books
Literary | General | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books
Similar Items:

Through Naked Branches

The Ice Palace (Peter Owen Modern Classics)

The Boat in the Evening (Peter Owen Modern Classics)

ASIN: 0720611431

Customer Reviews:

So beautiful.......2007-04-02

This is a beautiful tale. It takes a little getting used to at first because the prose is somewhat stilted and obscure...and then you are taken in, and the characters and beauty and tragedy all unfold. A classic.

Another magnificent tale from Vesaas' hand.......2006-09-01

This short book is about Mattis, a bit of a simpleton that lives out in the woods with his sister; Hege. They've lived this way for many a year and they are both in their 40's by now. Mattis has a hard time getting a job and getting along with others in their modernizing society of rural Norway. Then one day a big bird flies over Mattis' cabin, and he knows in his contemplative mind that "everything is going to change now, the bird didn't fly over my house for no reason". And bit by bit we get to know Mattis and Hege, and their life in the small cabin of the woods.

The book is just great, and it should not be read as a novel that glorifies simpletons, but simply a book that asks us to slow down and find that we as Europeans are still a part of an omnipotent nature. We are surrounded by so much marvel, we need a "simpleton" like Mattis to remind us that we are a part of the great whole. Highly recommended!

(I read a different edition of the book)

Literary masterpiece from the North.......2006-01-28

This is one of the greatest novels I have ever read in my life. It is deeply human. It tells a simple story of a man and his sister living in the wilderness of Norway. The man is somewhat of a simpleton -- but he is sensitive and reflective all the same. His sister is lonely...until a woodsman comes....
This is a classic tale, and I loved every word.

The greatest book I have read.......2005-08-05

This book is so tender and sensitive that I could not read more than a few pages in one sitting. It is very simple and easy to read at the same time, but it is important to be concentrated when reading it or else the beauty might be lost.
I have read this book twice now, and I am sure I will read it many more times in my life. I can not say that about any other book.

Mad innocent youth........2000-10-17

A masterpiece of Norwegian literature. It's an exploration of the boundaries between madness and "normality", and the story of a young man's sacrifice on the altar of common sense and social unwritten rules. How much reality can we stand before loosing our mind? And how much nature, with its power that dances on our fears and on our weaknesses. It would be a great book to read in the language it was written: a bodily and full consistent Telemark dialect. Something goes lost in the traslation, though it couldn't have been otherwise and the trans-cultural re-codificatoion must have been a hard work. I suggest this book to everybody, especially to those who sometimes ask themselves questions about life.

The Boat in the Evening (Peter Owen Modern Classics)

Average customer rating:

Vesaas at his best, although some of the tales are unnecessary

The Boat in the Evening (Peter Owen Modern Classics)
Tarjei Vesaas
Manufacturer: Peter Owen Publishers
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Contemporary | General | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books

Literary | General | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books

Scandinavian | World Literature | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books
Similar Items:

Through Naked Branches
The Birds (Peter Owen Modern Classics)

ASIN: 0720611989

Customer Reviews:

Vesaas at his best, although some of the tales are unnecessary.......2006-09-01

This book ranges from his greatest work, to his more mediocre tales. In my opinion, Vesaas was at his best when he wrote short stories, so being his final book, we could almost expect him to end his career with his characteristic magnificent writing. And occasionally, he really comes through in this book! Some of the tales in this book is among the greatest writing I've had the pleasure of reading, like the tale about the father and the son out in the forest making way for the timber in the snow, late at night. This tale is simply so great I have no words, it represents Vesaas at his very best, and is possibly the embodiment of adolescent Germanic inner thought. Another tale that stands out is the story about the young girl waiting in the falling snow for her love to come greet her, such a sad and beautiful tale. So totally at odds against today's decadent literature and society, with our completely sexualized society and other forms of decadence.

I can't recommend this book enough, as it really shows Vesaas at his best (and that says a lot), the only reason I don't give it the full score being that quite a few of the tales in the book are simply not good at all. But all in all, just great!

(I read a different edition of the book)

Average customer rating:

One of the meaningless Vesaas-tales

Sandeltreet
Tarjei Vesaas
Manufacturer: Olaf Norlis
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

Norwegian | More Languages | Foreign Language Books | Specialty Stores | Books
ASIN: B000EKEJK8

Customer Reviews:

One of the meaningless Vesaas-tales.......2006-09-01

The book is about a family that is forced to move around because the mother in the family becomes convinced she is going to die soon. The family and the farm they live on is nicely portrayed in the beginning of the book, and like so many other Vesaas-tales it starts out just great, and then it suddenly goes downhill from there. The mother becomes some kind of deranged person, and she forces all of them out on the road, because she wants to "see" something we never quite learn what is, before she fades away. I won't reveal too much of the tale, nor do I think it is possible, since basically nothing happens.

This book is not one of Vesaas mighty tales, and I felt it went on forever before it ended. I've read all his 35 books, and this is definitively not one you'll want to familiarize yourself with. Two thumbs down!

(I read a different edition of the book)

Average customer rating:

Two of Vesaas' worst books in one tome

The seed. Spring night: [Two novels]
Tarjei Vesaas
Manufacturer: American-Scandinavian Foundation
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Unknown Binding

General | World Literature | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books
ASIN: B0007DV2KC

Customer Reviews:

Two of Vesaas' worst books in one tome.......2006-09-01

The first book revolves around an isolated island where a madman comes ashore. The small community is brought into frenzy when the madman kills one of their young girls, and in anger a crowd of the islanders kill the madman. The blame for the murder is laid upon one of the most active members of the crowd, a young boy that is the brother of the slain girl. He is forced to deal with the "blame" and the "guilt" by the rest of the community, and the humanist propaganda is just too much to bear. Yes, we get that Vesaas was trying to "warn" the world that no matter how much madmen and minorities annoy "mainstream society", we aren't allowed to retaliate against their actions. But this is utter nonsense, and one of the reasons we as Europeans have become utterly powerless and weak creatures, is because of this kind of philosophy. Not one of his good books, to put it shortly.

The second book revolves around two youths being home alone one weekend, and all that happens to them in a single spring night. The beginning is so much like many other Vesaas-novels, in the good way, but then it takes a turn for the worse. It starts out like many of his books in a tale about young love, and this is where Vesaas is at his best. Then suddenly for some reason he starts adding all these very annoying and surrealistic items and happenings, and they only make the story one of utter despair and unhappy lives.

I appreciate that he tried to be very "deep" and philosophical, but this just doesn't work at all. I've read all his 35 books, but I can safely advice you to skip this one, because it is simply bad or too politicised literature, and with the added horror of his occasional present humanist streak. Two thumbs down!

(I read a different edition of the book)

Average customer rating:

Vesaas at his best, although some of the tales are unnecessary

Båten om Kvelden
Tarjei Vesaas
Manufacturer: Gyldendal Norsk Forlag
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

Norwegian | More Languages | Foreign Language Books | Specialty Stores | Books
ASIN: B000HYMTE4

Customer Reviews:

Vesaas at his best, although some of the tales are unnecessary.......2006-09-01

Average customer rating:

Simply not a tale Europa needs to hear

House in the Dark
Tarjei Vesaas
Manufacturer: Peter Owen Ltd
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

Customer Reviews:

Simply not a tale Europa needs to hear.......2006-09-01

This book is an allegorical tale about the Second World War in Norway, and many different characters' experiences during this period. Nothing is written plainly as it was, and everything is surreal. Most of the book goes on in the mind of the character, and I don't really know what to say about it all. Some of the book is quite nice, and it shows how the Norwegians often reacted to the war, with various views being allowed to express themselves. This is not too bad, but I just don't see the point of this book, the overwhelming amount of propaganda for one of the sides of the terrible fratricide that was the Second World War, just doesn't seem to justify this type of novel.

Shortly put: Stick to Vesaas' other novels, because even though this isn't bad literature, its not necessary either, considering all the other great books of the world you could rather be reading. Just check out my other reviews if you are all out of ideas, and I'm sure you'll find something to your taste. I've read all of Vesaas' 35 books, so I feel I do have *some* wisdom when it comes to his books.

(I read a different edition of the book)

Average customer rating:

LIV Ved Straumen, Dikt
Tarjei Vesaas
Manufacturer: Gyldendal Norsk Forlag
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000R3GWL6

Average customer rating:

One of the main works in the Norwegian rural literary tradition

The Great Cycle (Det Store Spelet)
Tarjei VESAAS
Manufacturer: University of Wisconsin Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000I1S3Z0

Customer Reviews:

One of the main works in the Norwegian rural literary tradition.......2006-09-01

This is possibly Vesaas' main work, and at least among his 5 best tales. The book is about Per, the farm he is born on, and everything that comes from that. It is simply put the classic European tale of pre-modern rural life. The family is large; their lives revolve around the different seasons and not much decadence at all is to be found. You could call this an epic tale, since it spans Per's entire life; from childhood to old age. He has no desire to take over the farm from his father, but as the time passes by, he realizes that he too is part of the great cycle, hence the title. I can't recommend this enough; the only annoying part I can think of is the fact that I'm unsure if the follow-up novel has been translated to English. Although, don't let that be any reason to keep you away from this book, because if you want to read one of the North's greatest author at his best, then this is the place to start. Two thumbs up!

(I read a different edition of the book)

Authors:

Authors

Authors