Some Finnish friends have asked me how long it is. That´s a good question and behind it, for non-native English readers, is the thought, `How long´s it going to take me to get through it?´ I fully understand that, of course. So for any other readers of this blog who aren´t native speakers, I can let you know the exact answer. In its published form the story begins on page 9 and the last page is 169 so the text of the novel runs to 161 pages. It´s not too long, in other words.
I can't wait to hold this in my hands either, and to see the actual cover as it looks so gorgeous.
ReplyDeleteIt's about 50,000 words, and as somebody who reads novels and poetry in other languages, I'd say it's written in a way that would be appealing to Finnish readers wanting to read in English. I'm sure it will also be interesting to see how Finland and the Finnish people are experienced by the non-Finnish narrator.
I was very conscious of that aspect of the novel as I was writing it, Adele. I wanted to present Finland, its culture, way of life, nature, history to people that aren´t familiar with it, but to do that within the process of the story unfolding, so it doesn´t read like a text book. I know that Finn´s will also be interested to see how a foreigner experiences their country.
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